Newcomers
by Vikasa
Summary: Life on Remnant. It sure as hell isn't the easiest, especially not when they're apparently from another world. And to think, one's even got amnesia stacked onto that? (OCs-from-Earth story)
1. Chapter 1

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts/ Communicating mentally with...well, saying that would be a spoiler.**

 **P.s.-- There will be references to multiple fanfics in this chapter, and maybe in future ones too, but this fanfic isn't taking place within them. It is, as ironic of a statement to say about a fanfiction, its own story.**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

So today's apparently been a _real_ bad day for me.

And I say apparently because I can't seem to remember much of...well, _anything._ The only thing I know for sure is that, for whatever reason, I'm feeling real, and I mean _real_ pissed.

I dunno why, or at what, or when, or anything else of that nature, and I--

 ** _"Are you done mentally monologuing, human? Or should I call that a rant of some sort?"_**

...Uh...

 ** _"Don't pretend as though you can't hear me, child. I'm speaking to you from within your mind,"_** The voices briefly chuckled lightly, **_"or what's left of it anyways.."_**

 _'What are you talking about?'_

 ** _"You don't remember anything? Not a single detail??"_** They asked in a tone that sounded more like a mixture amusement and curiosity than an actual sense of worry. If I had fists, I know I'd be cle--

 _'...wait, where are my hands?!'_

 _'Actually scratch that--WHERE'S MY ENTIRE BODY?!! I-I can't see anything! Or smell anything! Or taste, hear, or touch!!! WHAT'S HAPPE--!!'_

 ** _"Quiet, human. You're irritating me."_** The voices' threatening tone was enough to make me shut up, but not before mumbling about it being an asshole, **_"Anyways, try to remember an important memory, or something_** ** _. Anything at all would do-- perhaps family, friends, something you cherish?"_**

 _'Important memories, huh?'_

I tried to recover memories of family, and that just left me with a headache, somehow. After that I tried recovering memories of friends, and that just left me feeling...cold? The hell is up with my head? Is my nervous system messed up? Wait, I don't even _have_ a--!!

 _'No. Don't. Just..take an imaginary deep breath, and try something else.'_

After following my own instructions, I tried again, this time focusing on something I might've cherished, or found important.

 _'Something important, something important, something important, something impor--'_

 _"..da...ted...pen...or"_

 _'FUCK YEAH, A MEMO--!! I mean...yay..?'_

Admittedly, to my joy, my thoughts were interrupted as something played in my conscience, like background music. Though I could barely understand it, as most of it was static.

 _'But what is it? Music? Someone talking to me? So many questions already...'_

I begrudgingly shook my head in my imagination and decided to move on, trying to get another memory.

 _'What should I look for now? Hm...how about a date?...yeah, ok, I'll try a date this time. Let's see...'_

I tried imagining a date for several moments, but to my frustration, nothing came up...for a while, at least.

But then, one popped into my mind. It appeared to me mentally in the form of large white letters and a number, seemingly being only the month and day.

 _'February 1st? How is that important to me? Is it my birthday?'_

Suddenly, as soon as I asked the question, I felt something...something bad...it felt like my chest hurt, even though I didn't have one. Like my eyes were starting to water, even though I didn't have a pair. Like my fists were clenching, even though I had none.

And through it all, questions ran though my mind.

 _'Why does it hurt?'_

 _'How do I stop it?'_

 _'How long will it hurt for?'_

 _'Why is this day matter to me?'_

 _'..Who am I?'_

...the last one made my nonexistent blood boil the more I thought about it. I felt frustrated, angry, sad, confused, and scared, all at the same time. And I _hated_ it.

What the hell did I do to deserve this? What did I do end up having to suffer like this, without a body or my memories? Who the hell was I to dealt with this bad a card by Fate?

Who was I?

Who _was_ I??

WHO THE HELL _AM_ I?!!

 ** _"You are an Earthling."_** The voice's sudden return brought me out of my rage, **_"I was hoping you would at least remember that much, but I suppose I was wrong."_**

' _You...you know who I am..?'_

 ** _"Yes, I do."_** I sense of hope rose within my nonexistent heart ** _but I cannot tell you everything. Your human mind would likely break under the sudden stress of instantly regaining all of your memories at once."_** And like that, the hope was swiftly crushed under a metaphorical boot, to my dismay.

 _'Oh...then..what can you tell me?'_

 **"You are an Earthling named Matthew. That is all I'll tell you for now.** ** _However, as a gift for providing me with some small amusement for the time being, allow me to request something of you."_** The voices said, confusing me.

 _'How is a request from you a gift?'_

 ** _"Tell me about Ruby.."_** The voices proceeded, ignoring my question and causing me to mentally sigh.

 _'Ruby? Like the stone?...I don't get how that relates to me. Was I some rich kid?...please tell me I wasn't an entitled rich kid..'_ I mentally pleaded.

 ** _"No, not 'Ruby' as in the stone; Ruby, as in the person."_**

' _A person named Ruby? I don't--'_

 _"You're a Huntress...can I have your autograph?"_

W-what? Huntress? I--

 _"As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books...someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves!"_

 _"I don't need people to help me grow up. I drink milk."_

Why does my heart feel kinda warm all of a sudden? What _is_ this?

What...what am I remembering right now?

 _"Good morning, Team RWBY!"_

And like that, something clicked. Something that I knew held a special place in my life. I don't know why, or how, but I just know that it _did_...and I think it still does.

RWBY.

As in the show _and_ Team RWBY.

Images of them all flashed through my mind:

Ruby

Weiss

Blake

Yang

And Team JNPR

Beacon Academy

Ozpin

Glyzzle Goodwy--

...I have a feeling that's not her real name...but I don't feel like I wanna call her anything else.

Then something else happened inside me I wasn't expecting.

I...laughed..I think? It's hard to tell with it all being in my head...but I feel happy now, for some reason. Like just chest feels lighter, like I'd have a grin across my face if I had one.

 ** _"Seems like remembering the world of Remnant has brought you some happiness, human. Or rather, I suppose I should call you 'Earthling' from now on?"_** The voices said with a chuckle.

 _'What do you mean from now on..?'_

 ** _"Oh, that's a surprise I would rather leave you to discover for yourself. Speaking of which..."_** I suddenly felt some kind of force act on me, **_"I suppose this is where we say farewell for now, Earthling."_**

Soon after the voice said its farewell, I felt my conciousness slip away from me, leaving me clueless to what was to come.

 **-End**

 _A/N: Sup readers! GOH426 here, and, as you can see, I've started a new story!_

 _First and foremost, lemme just get this out of the way--I know this is really short. I've never been that good at writing beginnings, and I still far that problem with Team NAVJ. Regardless, the story will pick up in time, and I hope you all enjoy it._

 _Speaking of which, I am still going to be writing Team NAVJ, and that one will, for now, depending on what you guys want, take priority over this one._

 _Still, I will be writing this one, but chapters will come out more randomly depending on whether or not you guys are that interested in this series._

 _That being said, I do have a question: would you guys like to see a rebirth and childhood arc (a small one), or just have Matthew get thrown into the world of Remnant._

 _And with that, I'm out. Peace!!!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

 **"Blah"= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 **P.s.: There's a spoiler in this chapter, although those who might've already pieced it together by V3 or V4 will be good to go. For those who haven't and don't want it spoiled, get caught up with RWBY.**

 **As for those who haven't put it together and aren't caught up, but still wanna know, I'll say it right now--Ozpin is the Wizard.**

 **Cool? Cool. Now let's get this chapter started!**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

 _'Ugh, my head...what happened..?'_ I thought groggily before briefly opening my eyes a little, shutting them quickly at the surprise greeting of sunlight.

This time, with a hand covered over my eyes, I slowly got up and sat upright, feeling grass between the fingers of my other hand.

' _Ok, think. What happened..?..u_ _h...I talked to those voices, whoever they were...I got a few of my memories back, though the ones that weren't about RWBY were ones I couldn't understand. Plus it all played out menta--...'._

...It took a few seconds of me being in brick-shitting silence before finally registering my current state.

 _'I'VE GOT A BODY AGAIN!!!'_

"I'VE GOT A BODY AGAIN!!!" I thought and said simultaneously, though I quickly covered my mouth out of surprise with my eyes still shut, a smile behind the hands covering it.

I slowly let my hands move away from my mouth, and the only other physical feeling on my face was wet streams running down my cheeks.

I couldn't believe it.

I _can't_ believe it.

I have a body now...

"Ha...haha...hahahahaHAHAHAHA!!!!" I started to burst out laughing from pure joy and relief. It was admittedly a little surprising to me how much one could miss having a body. Then again, it also _wasn't_ surprising at the same time, since not having a body and only a soul, or mind, or whatever, just felt so...off. Not good, not necessarily bad, just...off.

After my, what seemed like, 2 minutes straight of joyful laughter, I took a few deep breaths before hesitantly opening my eyes, wincing slightly due not having opened them since...well, I didn't _have_ any a while ago.

Although, I'm sure as hell glad I did.

After opening my eyes, and after the few moments it took for them to adjust so I could see clearly, I finally saw where I was.

I was in a lush green forest, with birds chirping lightly, and I could even hear a river flowing nearby. The wind blew with enough force to make the leaves on the trees move and produce a calming sound, though lightly enough that feeling it hit me felt pleasant.

It was funny to think that other people may see this forest every day and consider it to be just another forest.

But for me? Just sitting in the grass of the forest and experiencing the scenery alone felt like downright _heaven_.

But, as much as I wanted to enjoy the scenery for as long as possible, moving was likely the best choice because of one word:

Grimm.

Considering that I'm in Remnant now...I don't think I'll ever be unhappy when I think about that, and I still don't know why, Grimm will be _definitely_ a concern during my time here.

And since I'm not anywhere _near_ Huntsman/Huntress-in-training level, being able to haul ass when they show up is going to be an absolute necessity.

With my next plan of action confirmed, I pushed down on my knee and forced myself up, wobbling a little bit at the unfamiliarity of how it felt to stand. After a bit of wobbling, and even one part where I almost fell flat on my face but managed to stop myself by supporting myself by pushing down on my knees, I slowly walked through the forest.

..well, I didn't exactly _walk_ without any problems. Truth be told, I had to use the trees near me as support while I walked, taking small breaks while I walked to rest and stand in place while holding onto a tree.

After a but of walking, I found the river I'd heard earlier, with clean water that seemed to reflect the color of the sky.

 _'Reflect...'_

With that thought, I moved over to the edge of the land just before the river and got on my hands and knees, looking down at the water.

And for the first time, I saw my face.

I was a slightly tanned kid with messy black hair that had individual strands of white hair poking out in several spots. In addition to that, I had brown eyes, but one major detail that somehow bugged me, yet didn't, stood out.

My face was different.

Not that I remember what I actually looked like back on Earth, but I had a feeling that this...this wasn't it.

My face seemed more like something an animator had drawn. My hair seemed wild and I had a feeling my eyes weren't the same shape they used to be.

Then again...shouldn't I have expected this? I mean, I got sent to _Remnant,_ a fictional, or so I thought(?) world, made by--!!

"OW, FUCK!!" I hissed, quickly placing my hand on my forehead in response to my sudden headache. For some reason, trying to remember whoever made RWBY not only resulted in static in place of a name, but also a damn sharp headache.

Guess I can't just try to force myself to remember everything...

So I let my memories come to me?...it seems like a pain in the ass because of how time consuming it'll be..but I don't really have another option.

I frowned as I let my hand fall from my forehead, taking a few seconds to look at my face in the water again before standing back up. Only this time, I actually took the time to see what I was wearing.

I wore a white hoodie with black sleeves, said sleeves being rolled up to just before my elbows. In addition to that, I wore dark gray pants, the ends of the pants being tucked into a pair of black high-top sneakers with white soles, the lace on both shoes being tied around the spot above my ankle to further keep my pants tucked into the shoes.

"I don't seem to have the most upbeat of fashion senses, but it's not like I _don't_ like it..." I said to myself, a light smile crossing my face as I clenched and relaxed my fists a couple of times, "then again, I'll hopefully be able to get some new clothes once I get to Vale. And the--" I went silent as I realized one cruel fact. One infuriating fact that I'd been too distracted to notice up until now that.

I was in Remnant.

I was in a forest.

...but _where_ exactly?

I took a deep breath, and said the one accurate word that came to mind as far as my thoughts on my situation went.

 _\--Ozpin--_

"Ah, nothing better than a good cup of coffee in the morning.." I let out a satisfied exhale after taking a sip from my mug, placing it down onto my table.

I swear, finding this heavenly brand of coffee may have been one of my greatest achieveme--

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!!!!!!!!" A scream far in the distance interrupted my coffee-induced feeling of bliss, causing to jolt ever so slightly in my _scorpion-tail-_ shaped chair.

 _'Why must someone have started those rumors that it bore a phallic design..?'_

I mentally sighed--something I've been doing for, quite literally, _ages_.

 _'Calm yourself. You've lived for many centuries, and heard many things. Accept their...input, and move on.'_

More importantly, who exactly _was_ that?

I calmly stood up and turned, looking out to the rest of the academy through the large half-circle clock window in my wall.

 _'Perhaps I should send a team to investigate? But who to send..?'_

I pondered for a few moments before one came to mind, causing to me to "ah" out loud.

 _'Come to think of it, I believe Miss Rose and her team are currently out on a mission. I suppose I could ask them to investigate..'_

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

"Hah...hah...yeah, I think I've been...holding that one back...for a while now.." I said between pants, my body now being supported my hands on my knees, "...wait, why did I say that?" I suddenly realized. Maybe another memory subtly making its way out?

If that's the case, then I must've had a _really_ bad day after all.

I stood up straight and mentally sighed as I looked up the blue sky. Though, it didn't take long after I looked at it before the sky started to gray sli--

"AGH, FUCK!!" I hissed loudly, both my hands rushing to grip the sides of my head. I shut my eyes in less of an attempt to lessen the pain, and more of one to wish it would go away.

As I closed my eyes, instead of darkness, I was presented with a different scene--one of a gray sky and plenty of rain.

 _'What the hell am I remembering right now?!'_

In my memory, I lowered my eyes from the sky and focused on what was directly in front of--...what...?

 _'...what...what is this..?'_ I thought in horrified confusion. My memory showed a scene filled with rubble and lightly scattered with dim flames in random areas. And to make matters worse, an area far, far ahead of me was _ablaze_ , heats so hot that I swore I could actually feel them a little despite the tremendous distance.

It looked like this place had gone throu--

"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

"AAAAAGH!!!!" I yelled even louder, now clenching my teeth as I got on my knees,

The cause of my pain was a loud siren and in the back of my head, for some reason, I couldn't help but feel nervous about it. What was it about this siren that was so impor--?

" _FUCK, ANOTHER ONE!!_ " I heard a nearby voice yell, panic evident from its tone.

 _'Another what?'_ I managed to think through the pain, though my question was never answered as I was somehow abruptly brought out of the sudden flashback.

"AH!!" I let out a quick shout as I was thrust back into reality. For a good minute and a half, I just stayed their on my hands and knees, panting with sweat coming down my forehead and dripping off my nose.

And I didn't notice it at first, but there were even some waterworks too, running down my cheek.

I took a breath and prepared to sigh.

If only I got to.

My attempt to sigh was a growl, causing me to frown and let out a wine as I dropped my head a little further.

 _'Is that a bear? Fuck...'_

To make sure I didn't surprise it or make it think I was going to suddenly attack, I slowly got up and turned my head to look back a--

 _'...No_

 _No..!_

 _NO!!_

 _NONONONONONONO--!!!'_

My mental panic was interrupted by another growl, and my stomach sank at the sight of the source of the growl in front of me.

A Grimm.

A _fucking_ GRIMM!!!

To be more specific, it was an Ursa, and a damn big one too.

I remained silent, taking a slight step back as I looking into its glowing red eyes, watching in barely revealed horror as it started to bear its fangs.

To my horror, it then did what I wanted the least.

It charged.

As it prepared a wide swing, I tensed, but had despair in my heart. The tensing was more of an...automatic response, I guess.

Maybe I fought a lot when I was on Earth.

But, in all honesty, I knew I didn't stand a chance. I highly doubt anything on Earth would've prepared me for fighting Grimm...

 _'But still...'_

Unconsciously, as if my body knew what I intended to do, I entered a fighting stance, causing the Ursa's eyes to brighten slightly.

' _I'll be damned if I go down without even putting up a fight.'_

At that moment, just as it was about to swing, a shot rang from the trees behind the Ursa, said Grimm dying immediately as a bullet went through the back of its skull, part of its mask zooming past my face and going into the water, leaving a small cut on my right cheek.

A moment after the shot killed it, the Ursa began to collapse to the ground, though it never made contact, as it had turned to ashes and gone with the wind before it could.

"Hey, you alright!?" A male voice that sounded...kinda familiar called out to me from the trees.

Who is it?

"Uh...yeah..I'm good..I think.." I said exiting the stance I held before, though my heart was still pounding. I could rustling from the bushes ahead of me and, soon enough, a person came out.

It was a blonde haired guy, the hair having two small strands sticking out from the top, and blue eyes. He wore brown cargo pants with a dark brown belt, black shoes, an orange bandana on his left arm, and a brown leather vest over a tan dress shirt with the right sleeve cut off. In addition, he also had metal spaulder, leather vambrace, and a brown fingerless glove, all on his right a--

...wait...why does he seem... _familiar?_

"Tai!" A male voice, this one sounding a little deeper than the blonde guy's, or I guess, "Tai's", now that I know his name.

"It's alright! The kid" I suddenly gained a tick on my forehead, for some reason, "said he's ok!" Tai replied as more rustling could be heard from the bu--

Wait...Tai?...as in TAIYANG?! YANG'S DAD?!!

"Good. Was starting to worry she missed." The other guy said with a chuckle as he appeared from the bushes.

He had slightly graying black, spiky hair and red eyes. He wore a gray dress shirt with a long tail, black dress pants, and black dress shoes, along with a red tattered cloak. He also had a necklace with a crooked cross-shaped pendant around his neck.

But was especially attention grabbing was the weapon he had in his hand and on his shoulder. It was a longsword, dark grey symbols seemingly inscribed on its blade, with a red grip.

He looks familiar too..

"You sure you're alright, pipsqueak? The cut on your cheek suggests otherwise." The red eyed guy noted, though I gained another tick mark on my forehead, in addition to a twitching eyebrow, at the remark.

Who's he calling a pipsque--...wait..."pipsqueak"..?

" _You know, I don't think they allow kids in here, pipsqueak."_ A slightly deeper version of his voice played in my mind, though I immediately recognized it, as a smile came to my face mentally.

It was, no, _is,_ QROW!!!

But what's Tai doing here with him? I thought he retired?

"Honestly, I was half-expecting that he'd at _least_ be injured." A female voice spoke out in a tone that seemed...bored? Wonder who that could be.

My question was soon revealed, and boy oh boy, was I not ready.

Out of the bushes emerged a girl with ravenous black hair with red highlights and red eyes, wearing a red shawl in her hair, along with a strange ornament that looked like curved black feathers. For clothes, she wore a shallow cut black and red dress, five necklaces with an assortment of beads, a red girdle-belt, and a pair of matching gauntlets over a pair of black gloves.

An object that looked to be made from feathers hung from the right side of her skirt. She also wore detached black leggings, and under them she wore black boots, which had red high heels and soles.

"Aw, come on Rae! Don't be like that!" Taiyang called out to--...hold up...hold the _fuck_ up.

I rubbed my eyes and looked directly at the raven haired girl, causing her to raise a brow and me to promptly shit a mental brick.

 _'RAVEN BRANWEN?!!'_

Why is she even here?! Didn't she pretty much ditch Taiyang after Yang was born?!! I do--!!

"Hey! Would you mind not talking about me like that when I'm right here?!" A higher pitched voice than Raven's called o--...

...no...nonononononono _NO!_ This is not happening right now! This is not happe--!!

The other girl emerged from the bushes and her appearance was clear as day. She had a fair complexion, silver eyes, and black hair that tinge to red at the ends, the sides of which reaching her shoulders. She wore a long sleeved thick black blouse with a high collar and white trim on the sleeves, the blouse being tucked into a black skirt, along with a pair of black boots.

And her outfit was all topped off...with a white cloak.

...holy...shit.

Those were my last thoughts before passing out...

 **-End**

 _A/N: ...ok, I'm gonna be honest; I did **not** expect to have Chapter 2 out this fast. All things considered, I thought it'd take a **lot** longer for me to write Chapter 2. But nope! Apparently, I actually have a surprisingly easy time writing this story._

 _Huh.._

 _Anyways, hopefully you guys are enjoying it. As you can see, this chapter is definitely longer than the first, to my relief. I honestly don't want this series to just have 1k-word chapters. At least 2k, but 3-4k is what I'm aiming for as an average._

 _And with that, my overall thoughts end. Now, onto the responses!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **Yifto:** Thank you for the input! Glad to see that people like the amnesiac route._

 _I agree with you when it comes to the whole "Phantom Pains" idea, and I can say with certainty that it will be one of the ways in which Matthew's memories return to him--over time, of course._

 _As for the whole "Don't do rebirth" thing...well, the results of that are pretty obvious. But still, thanks for the input, and I honestly feel like I preferred this introduction to the world of Remnant for Matthew, even if it wasn't... **exactly** what he expected (hehehehehe)_

 _ **Venomousbite:** Thanks!_

 _And with that, I'll see you all next chapter!!!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

 **"Blah"= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 _ **\--0--0--**_

 _\--Summer Rose--_

"So...how is he?" I asked in slightly nervous, but overall worried tone. The nurse seemingly noticed my inner worry and sent me a calm smile, along with a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry." The nurse began with a light laugh, "We ran a few tests, and the good news is the kid'll be fine. Looks like he just passed out from too much blood rushing to his head."

I immediately let out a sigh of relief. "That's great! Now we--!..." I went silent as I caught the detail in her words, "...wait..then what's the _bad_ news..?"

The nurse gained an expression that seemed to show a mix of curiosity and slight frustration as she looked back at the boy we found.

After he'd passed out, my team and I (still feels _really_ cool to say!) had to fight through a surprising amount of Grimm before finally managing to take him back to Beacon and have the nurses examine him, just in case there had anything wrong with him.

To be honest, we weren't expecting for there to _be_ anything wrong--it was just a precaution.

Yet...

"I'm sorry. That's something I can't really disclose with you guys." The nurse responded, "Don't worry, it's nothing major. The Headmaster just said he'd take care of the rest and that you guys should be more concerned with your schoolwork."

"But--" I began, but was interrupted by the nurse's index finger inches away from my mouth.

"No buts." The nurse stated before gaining a warm smile again, "Now, go on--get out of here. He'll be alright. I promise."

Even though I knew the nurse was telling the truth, and I trusted her...I still felt like I should help him more..

...no, listen to the nurse. He'll be fine..

With my thoughts somewhat settled, I mentally took a deep breath and exhaled, while I simply nodded on the outside.

With that, I left the room and walked back to our dorm room, a slight sense of doubt still nibbling at my mind.

After a while of walking, I finally made it to our dorm room and opened the door, with the rest of my team already inside, each doing something in their individual bunk bed.

Still one of my best ideas!

Tai was seated on the edge of his, twiddling his thumbs and showing an overall positive reaction to my return, wearing a happy, yet concerned smile on his face.

Raven was relaxing with a book in hers, not even looking up at the sound of me entering the room and closing the door.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't jealous that she got top bunk. Why'd she have to be so good at Rock-paper-scissors..?

...a-anyways, lastly there's Qrow, who was already fast asleep, his entire body covered with a blanket--all the while emitting medium-level snores.

"So, is the kid alright?" Tai asked with some concern in his voice.

"Yeah, he's fine..." I said, though I lowered my head and gained a small grown as I continued to doubt the nurse's words, to my displeasure, "I think.." I continued.

"You think?" Tai asked.

"It's just..." I began, "the nurse said that the Headmaster would take care of the rest...but why would the Headmaster get involved in something that was nothing to worry about..?"

"Does it really matter?"

My attention went to Raven, who finally spoke up, though her eyes never left her book, the sound of a page calmly turning following her question.

"Helping him wasn't the mission we were given. When it's all said and done, helping that boy was us doing him a favor." Raven commented coldly, "..and I think it'd be better off that we avoid him."

What?!

"Wha--Raven!" I called out.

"Agh, keep it down!" Qrow called out to us from underneath his blanket.

"SHUT IT, QROW!!" Raven and I shouted at the same time, Qrow's only response being angry grumbling from under his blanket. With that settled, I sighed before turning my attention back to Raven, who was still reading her book.

"More importantly, what do you mean?" I asked. Raven closed her eyes as she sighed before closing her book.

"Summer," she began, "tell me what forest the boy was in."

"Uh..." I paused for a bit, a little taken aback by her question, "..I think it was called...the Forest of Life..?"

"Correct." Raven responded, "and what is the Forest of Life known for?"

Why the sudden quiz..?

"Hm...well, the trees look beautiful for starters. Plus the water in the forest is always really clear...and..um...Oh! And the Grimm population there's practically nonexistent!"

"Until today, that is."

"Huh?" I found myself a little surprised at Raven's sudden cut into my list, "what're you tal--...?"

Wait...

She's right.

There _were_ a lot more Grimm there than usual. To a scary degree, actually. Normally, the Forest of Life is practically void of _any_ Grimm, which was how it got its name due to many seeing that fact as some kind of miracle.

But today? God, I can't even begin to count how many Grimm we had to fight through. Granted, it wasn't very difficult for us to go through them. But the amount of Grimm there were wasn't anything to bat one's eyes at.

But why were there so many Grimm there?

...could it be?

"Looks like you've finally put it together." Raven interrupted my train of thought, her eyes now open, red orbs looking directly into my silver ones.

"Uh," Tai began, sounding a little lost, "mind filling me in here, Rae?"

"First of all, call by that _irritating_ nickname again, and I'll tell the Headmaster it was _you_ who spread the rumor about his chair looking like a penis."

"Okay, _first_ of all!" Tai suddenly rose out of the bed, a light blush on his cheeks, "we _both_ know _Qrow's_ the one who started it, and my saying it out loud in the boy's bathroom was an _accident_!"

For a moment, I could've sworn I heard Qrow's blanket chuckle lightly..

"You still played a part in the rumor spreading." Raven replied in a uncaring voice, causing Tai to groan, "and secondly, what I mean in relation to the forest is that the boy was the one who attracted all the Grimm."

"I...oh..." Tai went silent as he thought more about it, "but what do you think could've caused _that_ many to show up?"

"...that's a question that the Headmaster will likely learn, judging from what Summer said earlier." Raven replied before going back to her book.

My hands unconsciously curled into fists as I turned my attention to the door behind me and thought more about the nurse's words.

 _'...is he really alright..?'_

 _ **\--0--0--**_

 _\--Ozpin--_

"So, this is him?" I asked the nurse beside me, who had her arms crossed with a look of slight frustration, confusion, and a hint of curiosity on her face.

The boy, who was unconscious and lying flat on the bed, had slightly tanned skin and messy black hair that had individual strands of white hair poking out in several spots. He wore a white hoodie with rolled-up black sleeves, dark gray pants, and pair of black high-top sneakers with white soles.

"Yeah, that's him." The nurse confirmed.

"And your positive of what you told me?" I asked once more, just to confirm it.

"Yes Headmaster. I'm absolutely certain--this boy had absolutely _no_ records. I even tried running facial recognition, but I couldn't find anything. It's almost as if he didn't _exist_ in Remnant until today." The slightly frustrated tone in which the nurse spoke had be both curious and, admittedly, feeling a hint of worry.

Could it be that he was another one of her pawns? Is it possible I had unknowingly let the enemy into my own school?

Both were questions I would have to ask him later...or _force_ out of him, if the situation was to take such a drastic turn for the worst.

Though the latter was a method was not one I was entirely comfortable with taking, I would make it so if it was the _necessary_ method.

"...mm..." I heard the boy groan lightly, his hand curling slightly and his leg twitching.

"You've done well to take care of him up until now. Thank you. Now, please leave us." I calmly told the nurse.

"..understood, Headmaster. Call if need anything." She said before leaving, closing the door behind her. Soon after she left, I picked up one of the only chairs in the room, a plastic black one, brought it over to the side of the bed, and sat down.

"..mm..." The boy groaned again, only this time he had finally awoken. He sat up and put a hand to his forehead, wincing slightly, "...fuck..what happened...?" I rose a bow slightly at the boy's... _colorful_ language, but quickly brushed it off. More importantly...

"Good to see you're finally awake." I spoke up, the boy freezing. His reaction made me narrow my eyes slightly in suspicion.

 _Was_ he one of her pawns, realizing he was in enemy territory?

The boy slowly turned his head towards me after removing his hand from his forehead, stopping a few times along the way, as if he were a machine with malfunctioning gears. Once he looked directly at me and I saw the look on his face, the feeling of suspicion I had towards him had vanished.

The boy was, to put it lightly, _astonished_. His brown eyes were comically wide, and his mouth, a straight line. His reaction caused a smile to come to my face as I made a conclusion about his position:

He, at the very least, wasn't an enemy.

His reaction was not of shock at seeing the enemy so close to him. Rather, he seemed more like a surprised child who had seen a mythical figure, or their idol in life.

"I.." He began, "...I...uh...um..." His flabbergasted state made me unconsciously chuckle lightly.

"Tell me, what is your name?" I asked, snapping the boy out of his babbling.

"...it's...Matthew." That detail was one that had admittedly surprised me slightly. It was the first time in quite a while that I had heard a name that didn't follow the tradition set up after the Great War came to an end.

It bore no relation to color.

His parents must've been _quite_ old-fashioned..

"I see. And your surname?" I inquired.

"Uh...actually, that's a bit of a problem I'm having." Matthew began, causing me to raise a brow, "I..I actually can't remember. In fact, I don't even know who I am..." Matthew said. If not for his hand tightly gripping seemingly in frustration, along with the frustrated look in his eyes, I wouldn't have believed him.

Though it wasn't as if I wasn't skeptical in the _slightest_.

"I see.." I began, "then what can you remember? Perhaps where your home?"

I could've sworn I heard Matthew mumble something about "this" being home now.

Did he mean Beacon Academy?

Or perhaps Vale?

Matthew shook his head, seemingly brushing off the his mumbled statement, before smiling lightly.

"I actually _do_ remember that one...but it may surprise you." Matthew said jokingly.

Oh?

"Oh? Is that so?" I rose a brow and smiled, "In my time, I've heard and seen _many_ things, young man. I'm sure that your home is likely one I've heard of before."

"Oh, believe me," Matthew began, exhaling lightly as he looked to the ceiling, "I doubt you've ever heard of it before...but hey, what the hell?" Matthew said with a shrug before looking back to me, "..before I tell you though, let me ask you a question."

...oh? Well, it's certainly a surprise to see myself on _this_ side of this conversation.

"Feel free to ask."

"What're your thoughts on multiple realities..?"

...well...this conversation sounds like it's going to be quite _interesting..._

 **-End**

 _A/N: And thus, ends the chapter! Another fairly short one, longer than Chapter 1, but shorter than Chapter 2. Honestly, it's chapters like these where I start to worry about whether or not it was rushed. Some feedback on that would be helpful plz :)._

 _Anywho, I don't really have much else to say, so onto the comment responses!_

 _Comment Reponses:_

 _ **Yifto:** Yep, it's like that :). Glad to hear you like it. And his thoughts on his welcoming party, as well as...many other things, will be addressed in the next chapter._

 _And with that, Adios!!!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

"What're your thoughts on multiple realities?" I asked, doing my best to put a calm front, though I was _very_ nervous on the inside.

I may not remember much about Ozpin, but the fact alone that he was a _Headmaster_ made me leave one mental note:

Do. _Not_. Fuck with him.

And that was a warning I didn't intend on ignoring. For now, telling at least Ozpin the truth ought to be enough...

"Multiple realities, you say?" Ozpin asked with a raised brow and a smile, "forgive me if I'm a bit skeptical, but I find it hard to believe that you could be from another _reality_."

"Heh, I don't blame you. If I were in your shoes, I would've said the same thing. And I'm plenty aware of crazy I sound.." I said, running a hand through my hair, "but it's the truth. Unfortunately though, I can't seem to remember much of anything about my old life, aside from a couple flashbacks."

"Alright then," Ozpin began, "and what _do_ you remember?" He asked, though there was something about his voice. He didn't exactly sound like he believed me. In all honesty, it was more like he was _humoring_ me..

"Well, I remember my name..and my home is a planet called Earth.."

"You mean you're an alien?" Ozpin asked.

"I mean...technically, yes?" I said, my voice rising slightly, "I'm human, but not one from Remnant, so I guess I ought to classify as an alien." I noted.

...actually, now that I think about it, how _did_ I get here? Did I die?

Judging from the flashbacks I've been having, with all the destruction and flames, it'd probably be safe to assume the worst--that I _did_ die.

In that case, do I still have my original body? Or do I have a new one?

...Jesus, the questions just keep on coming..

Wait, who's Jesus? Was that a subconscious memory? Should I--?

 _'STOP! Damn it, I keep getting off track!'_

I mentally shook my head, exahling before continuing where I stopped.

"Anyways, aside from that...all I've been able to remember has just been memories of flames and rubble..." I said somberly.

At that point, another question soon dawned on me:

What happened on Earth..?

No--what's _happening_ on Earth?!

With that much fire and destruction, something _big_ must've happened!!

Is my family ok?! My friends?!

Do I even have those?!!

I--!!!

"Matthew." My thoughts were broken by Ozpin's voice, along with his hand on my shoulder, "calm down. There have been points during this conversation where you've gone completely silent, and you even began to hyperventilate this time. I understand that you're likely in a stressful state. Take a deep breath, and relax."

I paused for a bit, looking at Ozpin, following his instructions and taking a deep breath.

After I exhaled and relaxed, I looked down at my hands, then back at Ozpin, "Professor..." I began.

"Ah, my apologies, young man," Ozpin began, "I am Professor Ozpin, and I am the Headmaster here at Beacon Academy. And I'm assuming you're already familiar with the team that rescued you, team STRQ?"

...well, I know _most_ of them. Or at least, I've _seen_ most of them before.

"No, not really, Professor.." I said with sigh, smiling lightly, "but, it's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you as well." Ozpin said, his tone sounding..warmer than before, "..so, what will you do now?"

Hm...what will I-- "AGH!!"

I quickly dug my fingers into my hair and clenched my teeth, my head seething with pain. I shut my eyes as hard as I could, and I could feel them becoming watery.

 _"So, kid, what're you gonna do now?"_ A gruffly voice asked me. The voice belonged to a man with tanned skin, a bald head, and a five o'clock shadow, who was currently holding me up to his face by grabbing the collar of my shirt, " _Are you gonna just sit there and cry, knowing nobody's gonna give a damn? You gonna give up and wait for end to come? Or are you gonna get up, wipe the tears off, lick the blood on your cheeks, and tell those fuckers to bring it on?!!"_

Who _is_ that?!

WHO _AM_ I?!!

 _"..I'll fight."_ I suddenly heard a voice, this one sounding much younger than the older man's. This voice sounded...angry? No, saying it was angry would feel like I was putting it lightly.

It sounded _furious_.

It wasn't obvious by the level-headed time of the voice, but I could feel there was an inferno burning behind this person's words.

 _"I'm not going to sit around anymore. I've had **enough**. I'm not gonna let them take anymore people away.." _I suddenly felt my fists tightening, and my teeth clench.

...wait...is this _ME_?!!

 _"I swear.."_ I now felt something wet stream down my cheeks, " _I'll drag as many of them as I can to hell before I die!"_

 _"..heh..now **that's** an answer, kid." _The man replied in a seemingly pleased tone.

And with that, I was thrust back into the present, now panting and sweating with wide eyes from the intensity of the experience.

Oh god, is _every_ flashback I have going to be like this?!

...actually, scratch that--I have _several_ more important questions!!

"Matthew!!" Ozpin's shout caused me to snap away from my thoughts and focus on him. It was only at that moment that I noticed that he had turned my torso to face him, with both of his hands on my shoulders, "are you alright..?" He slowly let go of my shoulders, and I turned to face the wall in front of me, looking down at the bed, multiple wet circles present due to my sweat.

"Uh..." I began, "yeah...I just...had another...flashback.." I said between pants, each one getting progressively slower as I calmed down, "It was of me...and I was getting yelled at...or motivated..?" I asked myself, feeling unsure, but quickly moved on, "..and I felt... _angry.._ and sad...Professor.." I turned my head to look at Ozpin in the eyes, "I have a feeling I didn't live a very peaceful life.."

"I see..." Ozpin said with a sad expression.

"But I don't think I'll start now."

"What?" Ozpin asked in understandable surprise.

What person _wouldn't_ want to live a peaceful life after one void of any?

But that's just it: I don't know about my life.

My identity, aside from my name, _very_ general home, and a few bits of my memories, I haven't the slightest clue of who I am.

And I have a feeling that sitting around living a peaceful life isn't going to get me anywhere closer to knowing who I am.

"From what I can remember, it looks like fighting must've been a big part of my life.." I said, looking at one of my hands, opened with the palm-side up, I then clenched it tightly into a fist, "if my past experiences have been anything to go by, then the one of the surefire ways I'll get my memories back is by going through similar experiences. Or at least," I looked back at Ozpin, "by continuing to fight."

"...I see..." Ozpin began, leaning back in his chair, clasping his hands together, "..in that case, I may have an idea..."

"What is it?"

"How would you like to come to Beacon Academy?"

...wut?

"...I'm sorry, what?" I asked, only to be met with silence, "...ARE YOU FOR REAL?!" Ozpin smiled

"No, of course not." Ozpin replied, a smile still on his face, "not at as a _student,_ at least."

Not as a student?

"..wait, then what _are_ you offering me?" I asked, raising a brow and tilting my head slightly.

"An opportunity to train with other Huntsman and Huntresses-in-training here at Beacon Academy." Ozpin elaborated...

...why do I not like where this is going..?

"And I already have a team in mind."

I don't think I like where this is going.

"I don't think I like where this is going.." I thought and said simultaneously, though Ozpin only chuckled at my worry.

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Summer Rose--_

"Go check on him." I heard Tai behind me.

"Huh?" I turned in my chair to look back at Tai, "what're you talking about? I'm totally fine!"

"Summer, in the past minute and a half, you've looked at the door at least 20 times. I can tell you're still worried about him." Tai said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "don't think too hard about what Ra--" Tai almost called her by her nickname, though we both felt a sharp bloodlust emit from the bathroom for a split second before disappearing, "...what _Raven_ said. Everybody's got their own baggage in life. And if he's got especially heavy baggage, than how about we help and make it lighter for him by helping him out?" I went silent as I thought about Tai's words, feeling like a weight had been lifted from my chest.

I smiled and shot up out of my chair, nodding happily while looking at Tai before walking over to the door and turning and pulling the doorknob to open the door.

...to open the door.

Okay, let me try that again.

To open the do--WHY WON'T IT OPEN?!

"Miss Rose," I heard Professor Ozpin's voice on the other side of the door, "could you please not turn the doorknob so that I may enter. That is, if I may."

Oh...huh...

"S-sorry Professor!" I said before quickly moving away from the door. About a second after I moved away, the door opened, revealing Professor Ozpin on the other side, cane-in-hand.

"Greetings, Team STRQ." Ozpin greeted, "how are all of you this afternoon?"

"Great!" I replied.

"Pretty good." Tai responded.

Qrow just shifted around in his blanket, though he shifted to much and fell off the side of his bed and onto the floor.

"Agh!" He yelled.

"...oh! Raven's in bathroom." I quickly said, the Professor simply nodding in response.

"Well, while I am glad to hear you all are relaxing calmly, I do have an announcement to make." Ozpin said, "I have another mission for you all. Though this one is a bit more...long-term than the last one you all took."

"Whatever it is, Professor, you can count on us!" I said proudly, fists on my hips and a smile on my face.

"I'm glad to hear that Miss Rose." Ozpin said with a smile and a chuckle, "To be more specific, your mission will be to train a certain someone in the ways of combat."

Huh? Train someone?

"..ok..who are we training?" Ozpin smiled at my question before looking to the side and nodding, moving a little to the side to seemingly allow more room for someone else.

Soon after, footsteps were heard approaching our dorm room and eventually, the person go--...

..wait, _him?!_

In the doorway, alongside Professor Ozpin, stood the boy we rescued in the Forest of Life, both hands in his pockets.

"Hey..uh...well, my name's--" A flush interrupted the boy's introduction. Soon after, the bathroom door opened and Raven came out, freezing once she noticed the room's attention was suddenly directed towards her.

"...what?"

 ** _-End_**

 _A/N: Another fairly short chapter, quickly published. Not sure when I'm gonna start slowing down, but I know I will at **some** point. Still, this one's out today, and I'm satisfied with that._

 _Still worried about how the whole conversation with Ozpin and Matthew felt though. Not sure if it felt rushed or anything like that, but I guess I'll just see from how you guys respond._ _As for Ozpin's reaction, hopefully it wasn't underwhelming. I dunno if people were expecting a "HOLY SHIT, YOU'RE FROM WHERE?!", or a "oh, ok, that's pretty cool."_

 _Probably somewhere in between, I guess._

 _Anyways, with_ _that said, let's head to the responses!!_

 _Comment Reponses:_

 _ **Mattpell02:** Thanks! I'll do my best to keep up the good work._

 _ **Yifto:** Indeed it does, and indeed she will. As for Ozpin's reaction, I already talked about that before this...what would I call this? A segment?...ah, screw it. Regardless, I already talked about it._

 _And I'll be sure to do my best to keep up the good work :)!_

 _ **Dinosaurchicken alertpoet09:** /thumbs up\\\_

 _And with that, I'll see you guys next chapter!!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Raven Branwen--_

"Ow! _Son_ of a--!" Matthew began, not being able to finish as he received a punch to the face from Taiyang, sending him back and sliding across the grounds of the combat training room, "...ow..fu--!" Matthew stopped himself from cursing, likely due to the glare aimed at the back of his neck, courtesy of Summer Rose.

"It's been 10 minutes and he hasn't been able to land a single hit on Tai.." Summer commented with a sigh, "he isn't going to make any headway at this rate."

"Well, it's not like _we_ can train him. Not yet, at least." Qrow said, "remember what Ozpin said?"

Oh, how could I _forget_?

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _(A few hours ago)_

"I'm assigning you four with the mission of training young Matthew here in the ways combat."

...Come again?

"I'm sorry, Professor," I began, feeling...puzzled? No, that would be putting it _far_ too lightly, "our mission is...to train this _child_?"

"WHO YOU CALLIN' A KID?!" The boy's, now named Matthew's, sudden outburst surprised everyone including the Professor, and even himself, a few seconds after he said it, his surprise evident on his face, "..did I just..?"

"Well, I suppose that's another memory presenting itself." Ozpin said to Matthew with a hand on his shoulder. Matthew remained silent for a moment before nodding.

"Wait, what do you mean by that, Professor?" Summer asked, a confused expression on her face.

If I didn't know her better, I'd be surprised by the fact that she already accepted this mission.

Then again, she _was_ itching to help the boy the entire time before Ozpin arrived, so...

"Ah, yes, that." Ozpin began, removing his hand from Matthew's shoulder, "You see, during our conversation, it came to my attention that young Matthew here has exprerienced a rather.. _severe_ case of memory loss."

"Really? How bad?" Tai asked.

"Aside from a few... _unpleasant_ flashbacks, all I remember is my name." Matthew said with shrug, though he winced slightly at the mention of the "flashbacks".

"Really?" Tai asked, concern in his voice. Matthew's only response was a nod, "geez, sorry to hear that, man."

"It's alright..." Matthew reassured, though he seemed a little hesitant to do so, "since the Professor's got a plan..."

"..wait, _that's_ why we've got to train him?" Summer asked, "but what does fighting have to do with his memories?"

Hmm...

"..it's meant to trigger them, isn't it?" I asked, causing Matthew to gain a surprised expression, and Ozpin to only raise his brows slightly and smile.

"Correct. Very good, Miss Branwen." Ozpin complemented, though I internally scoffed and nodded quietly on the outside, "Just as Miss Branwen said, the purpose of Matthew's training is to awaken his memories by triggering them at the sight or feeling of something familiar to him. A sort of 'Phantom Pain', if you will."

"That..doesn't sound very good..." Summer said in a somewhat worried tone.

"Indeed. Unfortunately, the process of regaining memories, at least in the form of brief flashbacks, have been rather... _painful_ ones for young Matthew." Ozpin said.

"Yeah, you can say that again..." I heard Matthew mutter as he looked at the floor with a wince.

"Ok...well, when do we start?" Summer asked with a small smile and a light shrug.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Matthew twitch as she'd asked.

"Actually, if possible, I was hoping you would start today, to give Matthew a small preview of what's to come." Ozpin said, and I noticed begin to slowly inch his way away from Ozpin, a nervous expression on his face.

"And where exactly are _you_ going?" I asked, causing Matthew to twitch and not look at any of us or Ozpin, opting to look only in the direction he likely would've bolted in if I hadn't spoken up.

"...likely to the combat training room. You're certainly quite an eager, young man, aren't you?" Ozpin said, "But you aren't going in the right direction, you know. You shouldn't try to navigate your way around an area you're completely unfamiliar with." Ozpin advised.

I then noticed Matthew gain a somewhat surprised expression before his face calmed down and gained...a smile? And a seemingly somber one, at that.

 _'What was that about?'_

I narrowed my eyes slightly in suspicion, taking a mental note of the occurrence to remember it for future reference, if needed.

"Ooh, ooh, I'll take him!" Summer exclaimed, her hand shooting up into the air.

"Summer, we're _all_ going." I reminded my excited leader with my hands on my hips.

"Wha?...OH! Right..sorry..!" Summer bashfully apologized.

"Ah, yes, one more thing." Ozpin began, "in order for Matthew to regain his memories at a proper pace, it would be best that the training should be done somewhat slowly. Thus, I'd advise that any sparring begin with Mr. Xiao Long, due his expertise being in hand-to-hand combat."

"You got it, Professor." Taiyang and Summer both said, while I simply nodded.

"...and you, Mr. Branwen?" Ozpin asked.

...huh...I forgot my idiot of a brother was even _here_.

Qrow's response was muffled snoring as he had his face shoved into parts of his blanket that had fallen off with him.

"..he'll be there." I said, Ozpin simply nodding with a smile in response.

"In that case, my work here is done. Your work however, Team STRQ has only just begun." Ozpin said before walking away.

"..So..." Matthew began, "..should we go now, or..."

"Uh..yeah!" Summer exclaimed, quickly leaving the room, dragging Matthew by the arm.

"..I swear, I don't even think she realized that she just ditched the rest of her team." I commented with an exhale.

"Well, you know how Summer is. She's excitable." Taiyang said with a shrug before leaving the room.

I stayed in the room, looking at the door for a couple seconds before walking over to my brother's peacefully slumbering body on the floor.

And kicking it in the ass. _Hard_.

"AGH! WHY?!" Qrow exclaimed angrily, though I easily shook it off with an eye-roll.

"Training room. Be there." I said before leaving the room.

"Oh, I will! I'll be there to kick your--!" The end of Qrow's likely proclamation to beat me was left unheard, as I'd already walked too far away to hear the rest.

 ** _\--0--0--_**

I sighed, massaging the bridge of my nose with my eyes closed.

"..hold on...I think he's starting to get a little better!" Summer exclaimed.

But how good could he even be doing?

A slight sense of curiosity biting away at me, I gave in and opened my eyes to see Matthew's progress.

And to my small surprise, Matthew was fairing fairly well against Taiyang. Not in trading blows, of course. But he'd been doing a fairly good job at dodging Taiyang's attacks.

At his worst, Taiyang's attacks were only grazing him. But that didn't mean he didn't have any weaknesses, aside from his lack of any offensive charges at this point.

He was doing a good job at dodging, but his footwork was still too grounded and not agile enough. And I'm guessing Taiyang's noticed this weakness too, at this point.

And he should exploit it right..about...

"Agh?!" Matthew exclaimed as Taiyang did a reverse sweep kick, causing Matthew to fall in his back with a thud. Before Matthew could recover, Taiyang already had a fist pointed directly at his face.

"..god dammit..." Matthew said with a sigh, Taiyang pulling his fist away and getting up. I then noticed Summer shoot out of her chair from the corner of my eye.

"SWEAR!!!" Summer shouted at Matthew, pointing a shaking finger accusingly at him. Matthew remained silent with a surprised expression for a few seconds before smiling and laughing lightly.

"Here." Taiyang offered a hand to Matthew. Matthew took it and was pulled up by Taiyang, the two letting go after Matthew was on us feet, "And before you ask, you _will_ have to give her money. She's got a jar."

"Yeah, I figured.." Matthew said with a sigh, smiling, "...so, how'd I do?"

"..well, overall, you were...how do I put it?" Taiyang hesitated.

"Terrible?" Matthew asked with a raised brow and a smile.

"Well, I wouldn't say _terrible_...but you could definitely use some more work." Taiyang concluded, "your defense wasn't too bad, considering you were able to dodge all of my punches. But, your footwork was too grounded and not very agile. Next time, try to be more loose, you know. Like _water_.."

Oh god, not again..

"Be like water..." Matthew said with a surprised expression, wincing slightly. The wince was so minuscule that nobody else had apparently noticed it aside from me, "..Bruce Lee..." He said the name with a warm smile, but...

...Who?

"Who?" Taiyang asked, understandably confused, "..You mean _Spruce_ Lee, right?"

"Uh..yeah! My bad!" Matthew said, laughing as he rubbed the back of his head. Though I could tell the laughter was forced. At that point, my distrust towards him had only risen further, as a question constantly ran through the my mind:

What the hell is this kid hiding...?

"..Anyways, as for your offense...well, your attacks were predictable and sloppy at the start, and you didn't even _have_ one by the time you started to get better at dodging." Taiyang said, "Why didn't you start attacking later on?"

"Well..to be honest, I guess I just focused all my attention to dodging and kinda forgot that I had to attack too." Matthew said, "...huh.."

"What?" Taiyang asked.

"I...I feel like I've _said_ that before..." Matthew said with a surprised expression on his face, "...you know what? I think I'm gonna call it a day. What time is it?"

"Uh..." Taiyang trailed off as he looked in our direction.

I lazily checked my scroll a--...wait, what?

"10:15..." I replied in surprise, and everybody else shared the emotion.

"Wha--HOW?!" Summer exclaimed, "We left in the afternoon, and it didn't even feel like it was that long. Did we sleep at some point?!"

"Not that I know of.." I replied, soon shaking the surprise away with a shake of my head, "Regardless, I think I share Matthew's sentiment. We should head back to the dorms and sleep."

"What Raven said!" Summer said, causing me to smile lightly.

Even though I knew I would leave all this behind after graduation, having a friend like Summer felt...nice.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Matthew staring at me, a small blush on his face. He quickly noticed and looked away, walking to the exit and leaving me slightly confused.

Though I quickly brushed it off as not important and decided to leave with the rest of my team and Matthew.

 ** _-End_**

 _A/N: At last, Chapter 5 is out!! This one took me a bit longer, and it's starting to look like this might be where updates start to slow down compared to before. Or they may pick up again after this. Who really knows?_

 _Before I begin the comment responses though, I do wanna mention why I included the Bruce Lee reference in the chapter. The reason is because, according to his Wikipedia page, Taiyang's fighting style is based off of Spike Spiegel's, who in turn was a practitioner of Jeet Kune Do--Bruce Lee's martial art. Or at least, he practiced an art resembling it. Regardless, the connection was there, and it's also in Matthew's past, so I put it in._

 _Now, onto the responses!!_

 _Comment Response:_

 _ **alertpoet09:** Well, you'll have to wait and see how Matthew's appearance affects their lives. _

_As for the whole updating part...well, I don't think I need to elaborate on that._

 _Also, a few exceptions I wanted to include, since they were recent, but not on Chapter 4:_

 **Imdelayed:** Glad to hear it! Thanks!

 **ExS-DrlfTeRr:** Believe me--it's not one of those. And I'm plenty aware of how much mental shit someone would have to go through with a sudden change in species. Thus, one of the reasons why I didn't do it.

 _Peace out and see you guys next chapter!!!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

That was...unexpected.

To be honest, I'm not even focusing on a specific occurrence--in fact, I'm referring to _multiple._

For starters, I started training today, so that was _fun_. And yes, I mean that _very_ sarcastically. Getting my ass handed to me on the first day was expected, of course, but still sucked.

Damn Raven, snitching on me when I was about to bail...

Damn her and the fact that she ditched her kid.

The fact that she abandoned her family, both blood and non-blood.

Damn that smi--...no...nonono..nonononono _no!_...I'm _not_ letting that smile inflect my perception of Raven!

In fact, as far as I'm concerned, I'm willing to bet that what I saw wasn't even _real._ Taiyang must've just hit me too hard during training and made my brain get all scrambled.

Yup, totally that. 100%. No question. Without a doubt.

 _'...God dammit, I need to erase that sight from my mind..'_

I sighed internally, deciding to focus on the last, and most important, unexpected occurrence:

The memory I regained.

It was, essentially, just everything I remembered about Bruce Lee. From his birthday, to the day he died, the movies he was in, wise quotes spoken by him, and memories of his fight scenes, among many other things.

Geez, I must've been a _real_ big fan of him. I wonder why though...?

Surprisingly, this one wasn't as painful as the others, and it didn't even come as a flashback either. It just kinda... _popped_ into my mind. And what Taiyang said really threw me for a loop too.

Who would've thought Remnant had its own version of Bruce Lee. Wonder what his life was like?

Then again, they've also got their own Bruce Willis, so maybe I shouldn't be _too_ surprised.

...now that I think about it, how am I supposed to do this from now on? I have a feeling that I got lucky this time with the memory regain on this occasion feeling like a brief pinch, and who knows when the next one'll be?

And when that time comes, what am I supposed to do if they ask what I remembered?...ok, I know Qrow might not, and Raven _especially_ not, both due to a likely lack of interest.

But what if Taiyang or Summer asks?

And then there's _that_ whole debacle of me being IN THE PAST!!! Seriously though, to think I'd that the first people I meet on Remnant would be _Team STRQ, of all people!!_

 _'Matthew, breathe. Don't think about all this now. You'll have plenty of time tomorrow and the days after. For now though...'_ I focused my attention back to the conversation at hand, wondering where it was at at this point.

Hopefully things hadn't taken a weird turn.

"You're an asshole!" Qrow barked at Raven.

"And you're an idiot." Raven replied in an uncaring tone.

Ok, good. Still normal.

"Come on guys, stop fighting! At least for tonight!" Summer pleaded, "Matthew isn't used to it yet, so doing things how you usually do might scare him off!"

Should...should I feel happy or worried..?

Also, why is Summer not only talking about me like I'm not here, but also talking about me like I'm a wild animal?

"But--!" Qrow began.

"No buts!" Summer silenced him, "we've got more important things to focus on. Like, for example, where's Matthew going to sleep?"

Can't I just sleep on the floor?...wait, why was that my first choice?

"Can't I just sleep in another room?" I asked.

"I don't think there are any other ones available.." Summer said.

Crap. And I'd rather not go on a hunt for a room that may or may not be available, so I guess finding another room's out of the picture.

"Ok...then how about I sleep on the floor?" I asked with a shrug. Though, my suggestion was seemingly met with..a split response, I guess.

"You sure?" Qrow asked, already in bed with his blanket covering up to his neck, "Not like I'm against it, but I just want to make sure." I simply nodded in response and that seemed to be good enough for Qrow, as he simply shrugged and moved on from the topic at hand by turning away from the conversation in his bed.

"You can do as you like. Just try not to be too noisy.." Raven said with her eyes still on her book. Her pajamas consisted of a dark crimson yukata with black edgings and a black obi tied with a red string. And, as a bonus detail, the yukata itself had a surprisingly cool black feather pattern on it.

Huh...it's almost like she's in her combat outfit, but _not_ , at the same time.

Anyways, as for Taiyang and Summer..

"What? No! We can't let you do that!" Taiyang denied, "You're our guest!"

"Yeah! We want you to feel comfortable in our humble..uh..." Summer hesitated, seemingly struggling to find the word she wanted to say.

"Abode." Raven finished from atop her bed, eyes still on her book.

"That!" Summer exclaimed while pointing a finger to Raven while still looking at me. Though, her head did move slightly towards the bed a moment after, as she muttered a thank you.

"Well, unless you guys have a hammock lying around somewhere, there isn't really anywhere else I can sleep." I said, arms casually crossed, "...how about the closet?" I asked, smirking on the inside.

Taiyang and Summer gave me an unimpressed look, causing me to smile.

"Calm down, I was just joking.." I said as I put my hands up, "..seriously though, I don't see any other option, except for the floor."

Summer groaned lightly, still not wanting to let me sleep on the floor. Taiyang didn't groan, but the look of confliction his face plenty showed his reluctance to the idea as well.

"Look, don't worry about it. I'll be fine. I'll figure something out." I reassured Taiyang and Summer, "Besides, you guys oughta be tired too. And how's a tired teacher gonna help with my training?" Summer was about to speak up, but I quickly interrupted, "Yes, Summer, I already know Taiyang isn't my only teacher. Not in the long run, at least. But he is for now.." I finished with a smile.

Seemingly satisfied with my answer, Summer sighed before getting into her bed and reaching to tuck herself in, only to stop as she gripped the edge of her blanket.

She didn't look at me, only to her hand gripping the blanket, though I already knew what was on her mind.

"Summer, I'll be fine. I promise.." I reassured once again, and, with a forced sigh, Summer tucked herself in, to my relief.

I then looked to Taiyang, who looked like he wanted to sigh, but opted not to, for whatever reason. I simply smiled in response at the blonde, since..well, I didn't really have anything else to say that was different from what I'd already said to the both of them, nor to only Summer.

Thankfully, Taiyang seemed to understand my silent gesture, his response being a somewhat slow nod before he headed off to his head, which was the one above Qrow's.

Feeling satisfied with the resulting situation, I decided to sit down against the wall, next to Summer and Raven's beds. I took off my hoodie, leaving my only top as a black shirt with a...wait..?

 _'What is this?'_ I thought, looking down at the image on my shirt as I gripped the bottom of it to bring it forward to make it more visible to me.

The image was of a fan, with the circular portion at the top being separated and in 2 different colors. The top half of the circle was a dark red, while the bottom half, along with a line connected to it that extended below, was pure white.

 _'This is...oddly simplistic..why would I bother to have this on a shirt..?'_ Feelings of confusion and curiosity swelled within me was I continued to stare at the multi-colored fan on my shir-- ' _OW!!'_

The curiosity and confusion dissipated the moment I felt a brief, sharp pain from within my mind, leaving as quickly as it came. Though, while it was brief, it still had its effects, as I not only had to quickly cover my mori so I wouldn't make a noise, but I was also left gently massaging the side of my head.

 _'...never mind. Best not to think about things that could give me a headache...'_ I thought with a sigh after I took my hand off my mouth. Moving on as much as I could from what'd just occurred, I placed my hoodie against the spot where the wall and the floor met, folding it in a way that made it work as a makeshift pillow...though the result I wanted wasn't the _instant_ result. It took me at least a solid minute to finally fold it into a comfortable pillow.

After that was done, I opted to continue wearing the rest of my clothes on, including my socks and shoes, before lying down on the ground and resting my head against my warm hoodie. Finally, as a last step in my process, I tucked my arms into my shirt and crossed them, and then closed my eyes and allowed myself to fall asleep...

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Summer Rose--_

"..Mm.." I began lightly as I sat up in my bed, slowly opening my eyes before stopping at the halfway point and closing my eyes again as I yawned, one hand hovering over my mouth as I did so. I turned and placed my feet on the floor, slowly pushing off the bed and standing up straight...only to hunch slightly as I rubbed one of my eyes gently.

"Morning Sum." I heard Tai greet me. I turned my head and saw him already dressed in the Beacon Academy uniform for male students: a black suit lined with gold, along with a blue vest and a white shirt with a red tie. Though, as an additional detail, Tai's always kept his bandana tied on his arm. And, to be fair, I share his taste, since I always wear my cloak with my uniform...wait...uniform..?

"Sum?" Tai asked me, though I was still stiff from the sudden realization.

"T-Tai..." I began shakily, "w-w-what day is it...?"

"It's Monday." Tai casually replied, though it felt like my mind had shattered like glass at the truth revealed.

I was hoping I was wrong. That I was having a nightmare. Or that I was awake, but _delusional_.

But that wasn't the case. Reality had delivered me a ruthlessly solid punch to the gut in the form of a casual reply from the mouth of one of my closest friends!

It's Monday.

 _Monday._

... _School_

"Sum, are you okay..?" Tai asked in a concerned tone, lightly placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I..." I began, but eventually showed a sign of defeat through a mix between a sigh and a groan, "..forget it...where're the others..?"

"Well, Qrow's in Vale, and Raven's...relieving some stress.." Tai said with a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his head. I tilted my head, feeling confused as to what he meant, "..let's just say she and Matthew aren't on the best terms right now."

And like that, I was awake.

"Oh! What's Matthew doing?" I asked, now more awake, and Tai noticed this, actually backing up a little bit due to my sudden burst in energy.

"Well..after what happened this morning--Don't ask...not right now, at least," Tai quickly added as he noticed I was about to ask, "he decided to go and explore Vale."

"Wait, but he doesn't have any money! And how's he supposed to know the area when he has _amnesia?!"_ I asked, rather alarmed.

"It's alright. Qrow went with him. He was _more_ than happy to." Tai said with a light sigh.

"Let me guess: This morning?" I asked, Tai's only response being a nod, "...you owe me for not asking you what happened right now."

"5 boxes of cookies?" Tai asked with a smile.

"6!! Don't con me!!" I quickly corrected, causing Tai to laugh lightly.

"Right...well, it's.." Tai's voice trailed off as he checked his scroll, "7:15 right now, so you've got plenty of time to do whatever you want." Tai said while walking to the door, "Try not to be late for class, alright?" Tai asked with his hand on the doorknob.

"Yeah, yeah, I won't be.." I said with a pout. It's not like I hated school! It's just...it's never _flown_ well with me. In combat classes, I'm A-Okay! But Grimm Studies? History Class? I suck at those!

With a light chuckle, Tai opened the door, walked outside, and closed the door, leaving me alone with my thoughts and reluctance to accept that I had to go to school today.

I sighed, lightly rubbing the top of my head with my hand, disheveling it a little more than it already was.

 _'Well...aside from whatever happened between him and Raven, hopefully Matthew's having a better morning than I am..'_

 **\-- _0--0--_**

\-- _Qrow Branwen--_

"Hey, kid, quit daydreaming!" I called out to Matthew, already at the door while he was a few feet back, in a daze.

I gues that he's got amnesia, but I wasn't expecting him to be so _amazed_ at the sight of a Dust shop. Or maybe he's never seen one before?

..Meh, whatever. To be honest, I can't really blame him. Back when Raven and I first came Vale, I remember zoning out at the sight of a Dust shop for the first time. Most of the Dust we'd gotten our hands on was either stolen from under people's noses...or from their bodies.

 _'Dammit...'_

I thought for a second until I looked down and noticed my fist had clenched unconsciously. I relaxed with a light exhale, loosening my fist and lightly placing my hand on the door.

"Wha?...oh, shit!" Matthew cursed as he caught up with me, I opened the door, a cool breeze hitting us as before we even entered, "...whoa.." Matthew muttered.

My only response to his reaction was a light chuckle before moving further into the shop and to the front desk, behind which an oh-so-familiar old man stood.

I swear, I've seen this guy _everywhere_! Noodle stands, Dust shops--I've even seen him at Senior's bar once!!

"Hey there, old-timer!" I greeted with a grin, waving at the shopkeeper. The old man smiled at me response.

"Mr. Branwen! It's good to see you again!" The shopkeeper said, "Tell me--did you get your revenge for 'you know what'..?" The old man asked with a sly smile, and I shined one back like a mirror image.

"Ohoho, believe me--I got him back.." I replied, the two of us chuckling before going silent.

"..so, who is this?" The old man asked while nodding his head to Matthew...who I only now noticed was looking around the shop with what looked like sparkles in his eyes.

"This," I began as I placed my hand on the top of his head and turned it so he was looking directly at the shopkeeper, "is Matthew."

"Uh.." Matthew began, gaining a sheepish smile, "hi.." He said with a small wave.

"Hello. Nice to meet you, young man." The old man greeted, "..so, is he why you're here, Mr. Branwen?"

"Ok, first of all, I've already told you more than once not to call me that. Just call me Qrow." I said, "and secondly--yes, he _is_ why I'm here. Truth is, my team's--"

"Miss Rose's." The old man quickly interrupted, causing a small tick to appear on my forehead. And I could've sworn that, out of my eye, I saw Matthew silently snicker.

"--current mission is to train him to fight." I continued, gesturing to Matthew with a thumb, "And, since he knows he's gonna have to use a weapon at some point, he asked me to get him up to speed on Dust.."

"I see..well, in that case, feel free to explore." The old man said, smiling as he gestured to the rest of his shop behind him.

"Thanks." I said with a small nod before Matthew and I progressed beyond the front desk and to the shelves holding multiple bags of Dust, "so, kid--"

"Could you not call me a kid?" Matthew snapped, "I'm willing to bet that I'm the same age as you."

"Yeah, right." I replied, skeptically rolling my eyes, soon feeling a glare aimed at the side of my head, "More importantly, why are you _actually_ interested in this place?" I asked in a quieter voice

"..." Matthew remained silent for a bit sighing lightly, "sorry you had to lie like that.."

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. Besides, after what you pulled this morning, I feel like I at least owed you _one_ favor.." I said with a grin, Matthew flinching with a nervous expression on his face, "but I still want to know why you wanted to come to this Dust shop _specifically_." I asked.

What honestly got me curious wasn't the fact that he wanted to go to a Dust shop, nor the fact that he wanted to go to FDTD specifically.

What peaked my curiosity was that he wanted to go to _this_ specificFDTD shop, and no other one. For some reason, this particular building was important to him, someone with _amnesia_.

For someone with memory loss, he was oddly specific with which Dust shop he wanted to go to.

"...I didn't come here for Dust.." Matthew eventually said, moving past the shelves with Dust and to the corner of the shop that had magazines.

Wait...hold on...he's not serious, is he?

"You came here...for a magazine?" I asked incredulously. Matthew didn't respond at first, opting to simply grab one of the magazines and stare at it intently. After a few moments of silence, I coughed into my hand to grab his attention, and successfully so, as his head moved slightly as he noticed my attempt to grab his attention.

"O-oh...it's...complicated.." He said, not bothering to turn towards me.

"Let me guess: memory stuff?" I asked, getting a silent nod from Matthew in response.

 _'As much as I want to ask him about it, I have a feeling that I could trigger a flashback on accident. And from what Ozpin said yesterday, those seem to be pretty painful for him...guess I'll just have to let it slide for now..'_

With my thoughts settled, Matthew and I headed to the front desk, the shopkeeper understandably a little surprised when Matthew tried to ask him how much the magazine costed.

Because..

"Young man, those are actually free. Didn't you see the sticker on the back?" The old man asked. Matthew checked the back and stayed still for a moment, his cheeks soon becoming a light red.

"...my bad.." Matthew said with a sheepish smile, "...well, thanks..I'll come by here again sometime." He continued with a smile before walking out the front door.

"...he's.." The shopkeeper began, seemingly looking for the right word within his mind, "unique.."

"Yeah..." I began, looking out the window and seeing him looking to sky with the magazine in his hand, "..he's a mystery...thanks, old-timer.."

"Anytime, Mr. Branwen.."

 _'Agh, didn't I just..?!...never mind..'_

I sighed, pulled open the door, and left the shop, with Matthew--our little mystery--now walking ahead of me.

 **-The End**

 _A/N: 'Ello lads! Hope you guys and gals enjoyed the chapter! I don't really have much to say here, aside from one thing, in all honesty. And that one thing is this:_

 _For those who are wondering, the "you know what" incident the shopkeeper refers to is, in fact, the whole skirt incident Tai talked about back in Volume 4 with Oobleck and Port._

 _With that said, onward to dem responses!!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **guest:** Nope, she didn't._

 **alertpoet91:** _I've actually already got his Semblance planned out, and glad to hear it!_

 _Peace out readers!!! See you next chapter!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

I'm not gonna lie--I sure as hell dodged a bullet there.

Guess I was right to think about that earlier; about what I'd have as an explanation if they asked about my memories.

Still, I wasn't expecting _Qrow_ to ask! Granted, it's not like he's an asshole or anything like that--I just thought he'd lean more towards the "It's none of my business" mentality...then again, since their mission is to train me, I guess I'm their responsibility to some extent, huh...

"Geez..." I let the word slip out of my mouth with a sigh as I tiredly ran a hand through my hair. My body slid down against the wall of Team STRQ's room, eventually hitting the floor with a slightly uncomfortable impact.

 _'...you know what? Don't worry about it..at least, not right now.'_ I mentally instructed myself as I switched to a cross-legged seated position, _'More importantly...'_ My eyes drifted to the magazine at my side, the background of the cover being gray, as well as the almost completely featureless figure on it, a wide grin on its face. In fact, the only way I was able to tell there actually _was_ a figure was the dark gray outline around its body.

After observing the figure, my eyes then drifted to the title of the magazine--a single word in white that left me slightly furrowing my brows as I read it:

Truth.

...Truth...this feels familiar for some reason...granted, I already know it was in the very first episode of RWBY. That much I remember for sure. It was on the shelves where Ruby was reading before she got threatened by one of Roman's goons.

But at the same time...I feel like there's something _else_..like a piece of the puzzle I'm missing...

Both the figure and that word..Truth...both of them combined feel familiar to me...but _why_..?

 _'Ugh, I feel like I'm going in circles!'_ I mentally exclaimed in frustration. All I was doing was asking the same question over and over again, and I wasn't going to make any progress like that.

I need to think...or maybe I should try the reverse..?...actually, what the hell does that even _mean_?!

"Ugh.." I groaned as I placed a hand over my eyes, frowning with gritted teeth. I could feel my head begin to hurt slightly, for once not from any flashbacks. Thank god for tha--...

...wait...now that I think about it, why _doesn't_ it hurt..? Memories about RWBY are still _my_ memories, but I haven't felt _any_ pain from remembering anything about RWBY...but why exactly?

Maybe because they haven't been in the form of flashbacks?...yeah..yeah, that's probably it.

Maybe it's best not to dwell on it for now. While I do want to remember my old life, I don't exactly _want_ to go through the pain that comes with remembering it. At least, not right now, I don't.

 _'Yeah..right now...'_ I took my hand off my face and gently rested it on my knee. I lifted my face slightly as I took in a deep breath through my nose, and lowered it as I exhaled through my mouth, a feeling of calmness presenting itself in my mind, _'I should just..clear my mind..'_

I took a few more deep breaths and exahles before slowing down my breathing to a more natural pace, my mind at pea--

 ** _" Oh? It appears you've finally hit one of the marks, Earthling."_**

...Wait, THE _FUCK?!_

The voices simply chuckled at my mental outburst, _**" I must say, I honestly wasn't expecting you to get here this early. I wonder--Could it be that you're a prodigy? Or perhaps this was just a fluke..?"** _The voices continued in an amused tone

 _'Do...do I know you?'_

 **" Come now, Earthling. I'm aware of your amnesia, but you ought to have remembered the conversation you and I had?"**The voices asked, still amused, **" Or maybe human minds are still too weak to truly remember my existence even after confronting me?" **The voices asked, likely to themselves, before entering a small fit of chuckles. After a bit, the chuckles finally died down, **" But I can go ahead and laugh at humans some other time. For now, I suppose I could answer any questions you have at the moment."**

 _'Questio--What're you talking about?! I don't even know you!'_

 **" And, while I still find that amusing, it is something that will likely lead to possible annoyances in the future when this occurs again. So, I'll be returning to you your memories of our conversation. Although, you may want to brace yourself.." **The voices ominously added with a small chu--...wait...oh _no_.

 _'OW!!'_ I shouted due to the wave of pain that flooded my mind. Though I guess it was more of a mental exclamation, since I wasn't...awake...wait, why aren't I awa--?!

 _'AGH, SON OF A **FUCKKNUCKLE**!!!!' _My question was interrupted as another wave came, the pain briefer, but sharper.

 _ **" As always, you humans are always so entertaining!"** _The voices remarked in an amused tone that was honestly starting to get _real_ fuckin' ol--..

...wait a second...voices..?.. _plural.._?

 _ **" Ooh, and it appears you've finally started to put a few pieces the puzzle together.."** _The voices said, though it didn't interrupt my train of thought. No, I _refused_ to let it.

 _'Come on. Think. **Think**! Where have I heard this before..?'_

I tried to focus on my memories, bracing myself for the pain I knew for a _fact_ that would come.

Unfortunately, the immediate result of my efforts was a dull, but strong pain in my head, along with sounds of static.

' _Agh!_ ' I grunted, feeling like I'd be scrunching my face in pain if I were awake, _'no...gotta...keep...pushing!!'_ I encouraged myself, imagining the feeling of gritting my teeth.

Just a little more..! Come on..! _Please.._!

...Dammit...LET ME REMEM--!!!

 _"Tell me.."_ A voice suddenly began, sounding worried. I was suddenly presented with an image of a black ball with one magenta eye and...a mouth? Wait, is _that_ the one who's talking?! _"Why did you refuse to join me? Why, God? How did I disappoint you?"_ The black ball continued, its eye shaking slightly.

Who... _what_ is that? Is this a memory?...

 _ **" You were incapable of believing in yourself." **_

...What..?

Both the black ball and I made a surprised noise, though mine only in my mind, of course. But frankly, I don't think that's what's important right now!

Rather, what _is_ important right now is the scene before me, showing the ball turning around, revealing what appeared to me an ironically white silhouette of it, with no eye and a wide gri--...wait...I _know_ this..!

 **" You stole your power from others. You rejected your human origins and chose to covet the power of what you call God. You never grew beyond your days in the flask." **The grinning ball continued, the black ball gritting its teeth in frustration _, Did you truly think you would become superior to humans by removing your seven desires? Don't make me laugh!_

 _"What's wrong with that?"_ The black orb asked, _"I only wanted to obtain perfection! I wanted this world's knowledge for own!!"_ The ball then clenched it--hold up, when the hell did it get hands?!, _"Why should I be punished for that? What's wrong with craving knowledge? What's wrong with seeking perfection?!"_

The white orb remained silent, still grinning at the black orb, causing said orb of darkness to narrow its eye and grit its teeth further.

 _"Well, speak.."_ The noir orb said in a pissed-off tone, " _What are you, anyway? Do you even have a **name**?..WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!" _The black orb asked angrily as it pointed to the white orb.

And to my surprise, for the first time, the white orb actually released its grin, forming a more neutral expression.

 _ **" Who am I?"** The white orb asked, **" One name you might have for is the World. Or you might call me the Universe. Or perhaps, God. Or perhaps, the Truth."**_

...Truth...Truth..! Shit, that's _right_! I knew I recognized the voices from somewhere!!

 _ **" I am All, and I am One."** Truth continued, **" So, of course, this also means that I am--"**_

 _'You..'_ I finished, the memory ending as soon as I mentally spoke.

 ** _" Well done, Earthling. It seems you were able to recall another memory." _**

... _You're...you're_ " _Truth", aren't you..?'_ My question was only met with chuckles.

 _ **" A good guess, Earthling. But no, I am not. Rather, I suppose you could call me something of an observer.." **_

_'Then why the voice?'_

 **" If I'm to be perfectly honest, the main reason why I decided to use the voice of 'Truth'.."** It paused, chuckling lightly before continuing, **_".. was because it seemed like it'd be fun.."_**

 _'F..fun..?'_

 _But more importantly, " _It continued, completely ignoring my question, **_" I suppose I should be sending you back now, since the time limit is almost up, and you appear to be lacking any questions for me to answer."_**

Wha--?! Lacking any--?!...Wait... _FUCK,_ I forgot!!!

It then began to laugh at me, a feeling of irritation growing in me by the second.

 **" Hahh.." It released an exhale, my "vision", if I could call it that, suddenly blinded by a bright light, _" I still find it an enigma that anyone would fl--.."_**

"Hey, kid!!" I was suddenly thrust back into reality by Qrow's voice, his hands on my shoulders, shaking me lightly, "You doing alright..?"

"I..." I began, but stopped myself as I felt a very brief, sharp pain in my head. Just enough to shut me up, but quick enough to make it seem like nothing too serious, "..I was trying to see if I could try to remember anything manually.."

"Hmph." I heard Raven scoff from above. I looked upwards and saw her atop her bed with her arms crossed, wearing her school uniform and a serious expression on her face. Not like that was anything new, though, "What if you'd gotten hurt?"

Oh...oh my god, is she being _sincere_...?

"An injury, mental or physical, would've been a hindrance to your training, meaning that completing this mission would take longer. Meaning _you'd_ be here more often."

I was wrong. I was wrong and I wanna punch her now.

"Hey!" I heard Summer exclaim nearby, my head turning and seeing her in an almost identical school uniform to Raven's, if not for the snow-colored cloak as an attachment.

Huh...so that's where Ruby got that from...go figure.

"While, I don't exactly agree with Raven's...perspective, she's still right that you could've gotten hurt.." Summer said in a manner I could only assume was scolding. Though, to be perfectly frank, the fact that she had most, if not all, of her daughter's adorable charm made it hard for me to see as such.

"..." I remained silent for a bit before sighing and rubbing the nape of my neck as I lowered my head. "..sorry if I made you worry..." I said with a weak smile, my head still lowered, eyes focused only on the dark brown floor.

My focus on the floor was suddenly broken was I felt a hand on my shoulder, my eyes widening slightly in response.

"It's alright.." I heard Taiyang begin in a reassuring voice, "I get it. We all do. You're in a hurry to remember who you are, how you lived, your family, friends--all of it. Even if it hurts, you still want to know. And I can't blame you." I felt my fists begin to clench slightly, moreso as an automatic response...but that didn't mean there wasn't any reason behind it, "If I were in your position, I'd be doing whatever it took to remember who I was. Trying to remember my loved ones, my friends..my _team_.." Taiyang continued in a soft voice, and I could've sworn I felt his grip on my shoulder tighten ever so slightly, "But that doesn't mean you should rush into it. From Ozpin said, it sounds like your flashbacks have been painful, to say the least." I winced slightly, feeling my eyes water a tiny bit.

 _'No. Fight back the tears..'_ I commanded, but found it a little difficult due my head still being lowered, gravity helping one tear escape, streaming down my right cheek and dripping off it, hitting the floor with a damn near inaudible splash. _'Dammit...'_

"You shouldn't try to rush into remembering as much as you can. If you did that, then you'd probably end up getting back way too many memories at once, and who knows how much pain you'd be in then. Trying to rush things and ending up in a ton of pain isn't going to help you. For now, you should just..try to take it slowly..one step at a time...alright?" Taiyang asked, though I couldn't respond. I was too busy holding back tears to concentrate on any vocal response. Instead, I nodded weakly, my fists clenched even tighter while I bit my lip, felt my nose get a little runny.

Before they could say anything else, I stood up, keeping my head low and making sure my hair would mask my eyes while I walked to bathroom and closed the door behind me.

"..." I placed my hands on the sink and stood there for a bit before beginning to reach for the sink with one hand and stopping just as I was about to touch it.

 _'No...don't do it yet..'_ I told myself as I pulled my hand away from the sink and to my side, clenched into a fist. _'They can't see you here. And they aren't the type to eavesdrop either...so just...'_ I thought, choking on silent sobs.

Dammit Taiyang...I hate it...I hate that he's _right_..I don't want to admit it...I really don't, but he _is_...I'd been trying to ignore it the whole time...but I can't...I just fucking _can't..!_

...Mom..Dad...somebody...anybody...please _help_ me...

 _'Let it go..'_

And so..I did...

 ** _\--0--0--_**

\-- _Qrow Branwen--_

"..." We all remained silent a few moments after Matthew went into the bathroom. And, as much as we hated to eavesdrop, our trained senses as Huntsmen and Huntresses let us hear a few choked sobs emanating from the bathroom.

"Looks like it's been weighing even heavier on him than we expected..." I said in a slightly low voice, making sure he wouldn't hear our conversation. Best to let the ki-...let him let his emotions out in peace..

"Honestly, I'm surprised he didn't break down sooner..." Taiyang said sadly in a voice as low as mine, "I guess the fact that we're training kinda made me forget he's still a normal guy around our age for the time being, even if the Headmaster said his past involved fighting. He was going to reach this point eventually.."

"..this still changes things." My sister spoke up after releasing a light sigh, "We were given a mission--To train him in combat, in the hopes that it would help in restoring his memories. But _now_..." Raven continued before slightly turning her head to the side,

"But now _what_..?" I asked, Raven remaining silent for a few moments before responding.

"It depends on his resolve." Raven stated. Needless to say, we were all surprised to some extent, for the same reason.

"His resolve? He's been trying to remember his past since he got here!" Summer exclaimed in a low voice, "This'll just make his desire to remember who he is even stronger..!"

"Or it could crush him." Raven replied immediately, a hush falling over the room, "This sort of revelation of his loneliness may cause him to lose hope and give up. At which point, we might not _have_ a mission anymore."

"But--.." Whatever retort Summer had was cut short was we heard the doorknob of the bathroom turn, followed by the door itself opening, Matthew walking out a moment later and immediately going for the door to our dorm room.

Though not before I caught a glimpse of his eyes and smiled.

Silently, he opened the door to the dorm room and closed it, leaving everyone else confused.

"Well, sis.." I began with a smile, "looks like you just got your answer." Raven rose a brow in response.

"What are you talking about? That didn't answer anything.." Raven said, causing my smile to grow a little.

"You sure about that?" I asked, remembering his eyes as he left the dorm, "...because I saw _fire_ in those eyes.."

 **-The End**

 _A/N: Hello readers! GOH426 here, with another chapter of Newcomer! This one admittedly took a while to right, even though many may consider it short. Though, I'm not an author capable of pumping out 5-8k words every chapter weekly (not yet, at least..I hope)._

 _But anywho! I don't really have much else to say, aside from asking you guys to leave your thoughts in the comments._

 _With that out of the way, onto the Responses!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **alertpoet91:** Thanks! And, Tadaa~~, another chapter!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 _\--Taiyang Xiao Long--_

"Woah!" I exclaimed as I dodged a somewhat fast hook, courtesy of a newly fired-up Matthew. He tried hitting me with a jab and failed, as I dodged and countered by taking his extended arm and shifting my weight, throwing him over my shoulder. He landed on the floor of the combat room with a thud, and seeing him with sitting on the floor admittedly led to me beginning to relax.

That was a mistake.

He almost immediately retaliated, quickly spinning around while crouched to perform a low sweep kick--a move that caught me off guard, mostly because of the user.

Who'd have thought that he'd improve this much..?

I quickly backflipped away to avoid the low sweep kick and, after regaining my footing, charged at Matthew, who'd already stood up and entered a stance. I proceeded to launch my offensive, consisting of mostly jabs and hooks at first. Just to test the waters, really. Keep it at an easy level for the time being, then raise the difficulty later on.

 _'He's..doing surprisingly well. He's dodged every single punch I've thrown, plus he's been looking at all of them without flinching. Maybe some kind of muscle memory, or a subconscious memory in his mind in relation to fighting? If that's the case, then I guess he really does have a past in fighting..'_

Seeing that Mathew was avoiding all of my punches, I decided to turn things up a bit speeding up the punches, though that wasn't all I had planned.

As I expected, Matthew was only having a little more difficulty seeing the punches, his eyes having difficulty darting from one punch to the next. His dodging, however, was still good. _Very_ good, actually.

 _'But let's see how he handles this!'_

I suddenly broke the pattern I'd been intentionally building in his mind as I threw a roundhouse towards his midsection, causing a noticeable look of surprise to appear on his face.

 _'How're you going to deal with this?'_ I thought, internally smiling in anticipation. I expected him to try and block it, and that was honestly the reaction I wanted out of him.

In response, Matthew-- _'...wait, huh?'_

To my surprise, Matthew actually quickly put a hand on the leg quickly moving towards his midsection and flipped over it to the side, stumbling a bit on his landing but eventually regaining his footing.

Matthew paused for a bit, seemingly taken slightly aback by his reaction to my attack, standing still for a moment, looking at the palm of his open left hand with wide eyes.

 _'Guess I'll remind him not to daze off in the middle of a fight..!'_ I thought as I prepared to charge. With a push on the ground with my front leg, I sprinted towards Matthew, who immediately redirected his attention towards me after hearing me running towards him.

Unfortunately, he reacted too late, as I hit him square in the chest with a flying side kick, the impact not only making him let out a grunt of pain, but also sending halfway across the training arena.

As I watched Matthew let out a mixture of laughter and pained grunts, I let out a small chuckle.

 _'Did I go a little too far..?'_ I thought jokingly before walking towards Matthew.

"Ugh... _really_ wish you guys would unlock my Aura already.." Matthew grumbled, struggling a bit to get up and eventually just opted to stay seated with a huff.

"No can do, man. Our mission's to train you to fight, not to become a Huntsman." I elaborated, Matthew sighing and drooping his head in response, "Aw, come on, don't be like that."

"No, it's not.." Matthew quickly replied, but went silent for a moment before running a hand through his messy black hair, with scattered strands of white...now that I think about it, why _does_ he have strands of white hair? His eyebrows are black, and so's most of the hair on his head, but why the white strands? Is he stressed...?

"I was just...thinking, that's all.." He continued, pausing for a moment before exhaling, "..never mind. It's nothing important." He said before raising his head to look at me and smiling, "More importantly, isn't today a school day? Or are you trying to build a 'bad boy' rep by skipping class..?" He asked with a smug grin.

In response I just chuckled, but honestly...I was relieved. After what happened last night, I wasn't sure whether he'd bounce back at all. I was worried that Raven might've been right and that he'd broken emotionally.

But what Qrow said after he'd suddenly left, about a fire in his eyes..it gave me _hope_. Granted, I still had doubts in the back of my mind, but I refused to listen to them at the time, pinning all my hopes on whatever fire was newly lit within him.

And I have to say, I was _damn_ right to do so.

The next thing I know, morning comes around and I wake up, before everyone, to find that Matthew hadn't come back since last night, admittedly leaving me in a state of worry.

With a very briefly written note stuck onto the side of my bed, I went on my way to look for the amnesiac, with the first place I checked being, as odd as it may sound, the cafeteria.

But hey, some people eat to drown the sadness away. That, or to drown stress. Either way, eating as a method for healing isn't exactly _un_ common.

Unfortunately though, looking there resulted in failure, so I decided to check the only other place I had a feeling he'd be--the combat training room. Though, not without getting a few slices of toast, 2 for me, and 2 for Matthew, who I had a feeling didn't eat anything last night, nor this morning.

Eventually, I got to the combat training room, and hooray! Success!!

There he was, sprawled on the floor, sleeping in only a black t-shirt with some kind of emblem of the front, with the sleeves rolled up to his shoulders, revealing slightly toned muscles, and gray pants, with no shoes and only white socks.

At first, I was a little hesitant to wake him, since he just seemed so.. _peaceful._ But, I eventually gave in and lightly nudged him I with one hand while holding 2 slices of toast between my fingers, the other 2 already having been eaten on the way to the combat training room.

After a few light nudges, he woke up, a little surprised to see me, though the surprise disappeared as he lost focus on me and immediately went for the one of the slices of toast in my hand. It was only right after finishing the slice that it had occurred to him that he'd swiped it from my hand without even asking, as he apologized with a nervous smile.

I forgave him, of course, and we proceeded to just talk casually. Not too long into the conversation though, he asked me to spar with him for a bit, and I really didn't have any reason to disagree.

And so, we did, leading up to now...

"It's only.." I began as I checked my scroll, smiling as I saw the time, "8:45, so I've got plenty of time to get to class from here."

"True, but do you have enough time to change?"

...huh?

"What're you--?" I cut myself off as I looked at myself and saw I was _still_ in my pajamas.

...How did I not notice?!

I almost immediately bolted for the exit, completely ignoring the amnesiac I'd left behind.

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

"Have fun at school, Teach!" I called out to Taiyang somewhat sarcastically, my training insructor ignoring me as he ran off to his team's dorm.

Then again, considering that a class is actually held here, I guess that means I oughta skidaddle too...huh..skidaddle..ski _daddle.._

Skidaddle...feels weird to say that.." I said, raising an eyebrow at the oddness of the word. It didn't make any sense...but I felt like that _was_ why it appealed to me.

With a shake of my head, I brushed off the thought before pushing down on one knee and standing up, admittedly taking a moment to look at my slightly toned muscles, a bit of pride and self-satisfaction building within me as a small smirk came to my face.

Though both feelings and the smirk were diminished as I remembered that close quarters specialists like Yang and Mercury would most definitely still _floor_ me if I were to fight either of them one-on-one.

"Hahh.." I sighed, gently rubbing my nape with hand before rolling down the sleeves on my shirt, small spots on each feeling a little cold from dried sweat. I walked over to a spot a few feet away from where I was seated and picked up my hoodie, which was placed next to my shoes.

I almost put it on, though I instead opted for a different look, tying the sleeves around my waist. Not entirely sure _why_ I did it. I just liked the look more, for some reason

I then put on and tied both of shoes and left the combat training room, though not entirely sure as to where I should go.

Team STRQ's, and I guess, my, dorm?

Hmm...nah. I'd rather not just sit around all day. Besides, I think I'd need a Scroll to unlock the door anyways, so I can't get in unless anyone else is there, which won't be the case, since it's Tuesday.

Um...maybe the cafeteria..?

..No, I already ate the slices of toast Tai gave me before training.

But where else can I go?

"Hmm..." I pondered out loud with a hand lightly pinching my chin. I swear, it's honestly starting to get a little frustrating with how little I know about Remnant. Granted, I realize I probably know a _lot_ more than anyone else here, except for maybe Ozpin. Not entirely sure how old he is. Or maybe he's just young, but the stress gave him white hair?...yeah, with the responsibility of being a Headmaster, I guess I could see that. But getting back on topic, I'm certain I know more than anyone else here, I just can't _remember_ it.

Damn...if only there was some kind of library somewhe--...wait..

I let a mischievous grin come to my face as a thought came to my mind.

 _'I **am** at a school...'_

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Summer Rose--_

"Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world. With the creatures of darkness known as Grimm spread across the world of Remnant, humanity depends heavily, if not entirely, of the existence of Huntsman and Huntresses." Professor Port lectured.

Professor Port was a well built man with black, graying hair, and a similarly-colored mustache, as well as dark gray, almost black eyes. He wore a double-breasted dark brown suit with deep red piping and dark brown pants tucked into black boots.

"Now, who here can describe what Huntsmen and Huntresses essentially are in one sentence?" Professor Port asked, the class silent for a moment before the slight rustling of clothing could be heard as a hand shot up into the air. Professor Port smiled, "Yes, Peter?"

"Those who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves!" Professor Port's son, Peter, answered with enthusiasm radiant in his voice. His father smiled and chuckled lightly while nodding his head.

"Good answer." The professor praised before beginning to circle back around his desk, "Indeed, many Huntsman and Huntresses are those who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves...However," the Professor stopped walking once he was behind his desk, "that isn't always the case. For example, the reasons for which one protects the helpless will most certainly vary between Hunters."

"Reasons?" The question slipped out of my mouth on accident, though I chose not to take it back.

"Yes, Miss Rose." The professor confirmed, "Contrary to what some of you may believe, not every Hunter does their job out of the goodness of their hearts. Some do it for money. And others, for fame and glory." The professor listed off, nodding his head lightly to opposite sides as he listed each intention off before sighing lightly, "Now, I realize that what I'm saying at the moment may seem...cynical, to say the least. However, it's important that you all realize that Huntsmen and Huntresses aren't all the knights in shining armor you may imagine them to be." The professor said, the air of the classroom feeling slightly tense at his words.

"But that doesn't mean _you_ can't be." Professor Port finished with a smile, the bell ringing a moment after. The tense air in the classroom had immediately dissipated at his final words before the bell rang.

But at the same time...

"I'm sorry, I just need to check one more time--this class is Grimm Studies, right?" Qrow asked Tai with a raised eyebrow, the blonde in question simply sighing in response.

"It's a wonder we get any work done in this class with how often he goes off topic.." Raven said while lightly massaging the bridge of her nose.

"..I mean..at least they're still good lessons?" My attempt to justify the professor's habit was met with simultaneous shrugs from the rest of my teammates.

"I just hope Matt's doing alright.." Tai commented, causing my partner to raise a brow.

"'Matt'?" Raven asked, a brow still raised.

"What? You don't think he'll like it?" Tai asked, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

"I don't think I'm a reliable source for that question."

"Uh..why?"

"Because I _still_ feel the urge to send you through a wall head-first whenever you say the nickname you came up with for me-- _without my permission_ , I might add." Raven's casual mention of an action that would likely lead to Tai getting at least a concussion made the blonde gulp loudly.

"N-noted.." Tai said nervously.

"Moving on, you said you'd left Matthew in the training room?" Raven asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"Then I suppose we have to go look for him now." Raven said with an exhale.

"What? Why?" Tai asked, understandably confused. I was also kinda confused, and

Qrow...actually, I don't even think Qrow's listening to their conversation.

"Because he doesn't seem like the type to sit still in one place." Raven responded, "The fact that I know that, yet you didn't, is a bit disappointing, Taiyang.." Raven continued before walking ahead of us.

"I..I don't.." Tai began in a confused tone, but was stopped by Qrow putting a hand on his shoul--...oh..huh, so he _was_ listening.

"Don't. Believe me, it's easier to just let it go and move on." Qrow said in a somewhat tired tone, which was surprising since he slept through _all_ of class.

Tai was about to say something more, but instead opted to just exhale and let his shoulders drop. Qrow lightly tapped his back, and we continued to walk, now apparently, according to Raven, having to look for Matthew.

But it's not like he could cause any kind of mess...right..?

 ** _-The End_**

 _A/N: Ok, first thing's first--I'm sorry this chapter came out late. But frankly, I'm still really damn new at this and I'm not gonna lie, meeting a schedule is not exactly my forte._

 _Plus, I have to deal with my brain constantly thinking **ahead** with this story, instead of in the present. Because of this, I actually have several future moments planned out in my head, and a REALLY big one, but then I come to the realization of "Wait...the f*k's happening right now tho?"_

 _And so, my predicament._

 _Another thing I have to apologize for is if this chapter felt lackluster in any way. And if it did, please say so in the comments. Because later on, I'm definitely gonna take a kinda-sorta break from publishing new chapter to edit and/or rewrite old ones._

 _Aside from that, I don't really have much else to talk about._

 _RWBY Volume 5 concluded last Saturday, and...well, I'm honestly not gonna say anything about it, considering that a lot of the fans most likely have to wait until this upcoming Saturday to watch it on the good ol' YouTube._

 _With all that said and done, onward to les responses!!!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 **chirotiando:** _That much is something that I'll actually be keeping a secret for now :). Also, thanks!!_


	9. Special Message

Hey guys..this isn't really the new chapter, which I'm admittedly taking a while to write, even though it isn't that long...but frankly this is just as, if not _more_ important than a new chapter. And..well, sorry I'm a day late on this..

As you all know, on February 1st, back in 2015, the man we know and love, Monty Oum, unfortunately passed away due to a severe allergic reaction.

..honestly, I'm not entirely sure what to say. He was, to me, and likely many, many other people, a sort of role model, or a goal to aim at. Unfortunately, I was one of those people who only found out about Monty Oum through his death. In fact, I hadn't even heard of RoosterTeeth until then.

So, out of curiosity, I checked out RoosterTeeth, and the first video I watched on their channel was their tribute to Monty Oum video. The first time I saw it..I won't lie, I felt pretty damn sad. But at the same time, I know FOR A FACT that the news didn't hit me anywhere near as hard as it did for people who'd really known Monty, including both everyone at RoosterTeeth and the die-hard fans.

His personality alone in the video already had me hooked. From his jokes to his words of inspiration, it all led to me thinking "This guy is seems really, really cool. Why have I not heard of him before?" And, to be honest, it's likely my own fault for not having heard of him, but I digress.

Now, throughout the video, something else that caught my eye was the plethora of animations shown, with the one getting my attention the most being a group of 4 girls, each with their own distinct color. I got curious about these 4 and started looking more into RoosterTeeth, eventually finding the little gem, no pun intended, known as RWBY.

Curious, again, I clicked on Chapter 1 of Volume 1 just to see what it was like. I didn't even watch the trailers first, come to think of it.

And I ended up binge-watching Volumes 1 and 2 in a single day, already hyped about the soon-to-be-released Volume 3.

Needless to say, I was _hooked._ Not only by the story, but also by the animation. And not just in a "this looks _really_ badass" kind of way, although that was included.

But more in a "I want to be able to do something like this someday" sort of way.

...anyways, I think I'll cut it off here and finish with a few more words.

 _"The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering."_

 _-Bruce Lee_

And I'll be damned if such a life wasn't lived by Monty Oum.

Thank you for everything, Monty. We all miss you and you will forever remain in our hearts...


	10. Chapter 9

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 _"Blah"_ **Dialogue in memory/ Scroll call**

 _\--Taiyang Xiao Long--_

 _"You find him yet?"_

Oh, for the love of--

"No, Qrow, we haven't found him yet." I said through gritted teeth and a forced smile, having responded to this exact same question for the _9th_ time, in the span of 10 minutes, "Have you?"

 _"Nope, no luck here."_ Qrow responded, the sound of a few books hitting the floor being audible through the call.

"We've already checked the combat training room, but he wasn't there. And there's no way he could've entered the dorm without any of us unlocking the door for him." I said before letting a sigh escape me, "Sum went to go check the cafeteria."

" _And my sister?_ "

"Said she, and I quote, 'couldn't care less', before going off to the library." I said with an eye roll, "That was actually right before you called."

" _Yeah, sounds like her."_ My partner commented, with the sound of more books falling soon after...wait..

"Qrow..where _are_ you right now?"

" _Our dorm."_ He replied simply, as if there was absolutely nothing wrong.

"Wha--?! _Why_?!"

" _I had to take a dump."_ He replied before yawning. A powerful urge to facepalm myself grew within me, but was held back by a heavy sigh.

"Fine. But get over here. We need your help to find him too." I said.

" _Bu--_ "

"Or do you _want_ me to tell Raven that you touched her books?"

And like that, the call was over...honestly, I didn't even expect it to go that well. I heard books falling before, and put two-and-two together once Qrow told me he was at the dorm. I thought he'd just angrily grumble at the ultimatum. But immediate obedience?

I'm going to have to keep a mental note of this as the _only_ time I've seen Qrow show anykind of fear towards Raven.

"Tai?" Summer's voice snapped me out of my mental noting, causing me to look up and see a curious, but slightly concerned look on her face, "You alright?

"Oh..yeah, I'm fine. Just zoned out a little, that's all." I reassured, my team leader surprisingly moving on quickly as she nodded, turned back around, and began to walk ahead of me. I tried to call out for her to slow down, but she seemingly didn't hear me, despite not only being not too far away, but also walking at a slightly faster than normal pace.

And so, catching up to her was easy.

"..so, I'm guessing you didn't find him at the cafeteria?" I asked.

I was well aware of how dumb the question sounded. Of course she didn't find him. Otherwise, he'd be _here_. But I needed _something_ to start a conversation.

"Yeah, he wasn't there. But, it's not like there weren't _any_ benefits." Summer said with a slight joyful rise in her voice at the end, "The lunch lady, said he passed by there during classes. Since he doesn't have a scroll, he couldn't pay for any food, but she took pity on him and let him take a few bananas and a glass of milk."

...What?

"What'd he have to do to get _her_ to pity him?" I asked, slightly amazed.

"Tai, she's not _that_ bad."

"She was in on the prank Qrow pulled on me last year!" I quickly exclaimed, though my team leader simply rose a brow.

"Can you really blame him? You tricked him into wearing a _skirt_ before we even got into Beacon."

"But I--!"

"No buts." She interrupted, "You deserved it, and he got payback." My only response was to slump my shoulders in depression, "..but, getting back on topic, apparently Matthew was really hungry, and she couldn't help but give him the food."

"How hungry?"

"To quote her, 'His belly was roarin' like an Ursa Major'." Summer's imitation of the lunch lady's accent and joyful tone made me chuckle a little.

"But we still don't know where he is?" I asked, Summer shaking her head lightly in response as we turned a corner.

"Nope. Turns out, she heard him mention the library while he was there." She commented in a more cheerful tone, "If we're lucky, then Raven's already met up with him."

"If that's the case, then should we go to the library?" I asked. Summer hummed lightly for a few moments while pinching her chin lightly, a smile then coming to her face as she stopped humming.

"No."

...huh?

"Sum...are you sure? This is _Raven_ we're talking about. The same girl who threatened me with violence just for giving her a nickname." I clarified, not knowing if Summer was genuinely alright.

"Yeah Tai, _that_ Raven. I already know she can be... _blunt_ , but helping Matthew's our mission, our responsibility. We ought to spend more time with him now so we can get more comfortable with him and have an easier time training him in the future." Summer explained. I was admittedly a bit surprised by her planning ahead of time, but I kept that to myself, "And besides, he's gotten one-on-one time with both you _and_ Qrow. It's about time _we_ got a turn." She finished with a smile. Though...

"Doesn't that make you last?" My comment made the leader of Team STRQ flinch, her head then drooping, and shoulders slouching, in depression.

Summer's only verbal response was to lightly groan, causing me to sweatdrop with a nervous smile.

 _'Hopefully things in the library are going well...'_

 _ **\--0--0--**_

 _\--Matthew--_

Yep, it's official; I'm lost.

This place is huge! I don't even know how I _got_ here! I remember a hallway leading here, double doors, and a front desk. But after that? Zilch, nada, dick bupkus...wait what do those even _mean_?!!

 _'Ugh, never mind...'_

I shook my head, not only shaking away the thoughts through a literal motion, but also slightly disheveling my already-messy hair. Focus regained, I walked down an aisle, a multitude of bookshelves on each side.

After almost half a minute of walking, I decided to just turn a corner and see what the hell I'd be able to find.

After all, I was really only hear to satisfy my boredom from a lack of anything else to do. I mean, I can't just train _all_ day. I'm not a Sai--...Sai...what was I about to sa--

"Oof!" I let out a noise as I bumped into someone in front of me, the person I bumped into letting out the same noise as they dropped the book they were holding at my feet, "..oh, sorry about that.." I began, kneeling down to pick up the book they were holding. I grabbed the spine and took the opportunity to look at the cove--...wait...is this what I _think_ it is..?

Ninja's of Love...Ninja's of Love...Ninja's of Love...

 _'...Blake?!'_

A glimpse of hope made my head dart upwards to see the face of the owner of the boo--...oh..

 _'It's just you.'_ I thought in disappointment, red eyes looking into my brown ones. Yep, I just so happened to be lucky enough to run into _Raven Branwen_ , of all people.

 _'Sure was hoping I'd get some one-on-one time with **her** one of these days.' _I thought in a tone rich with sarcasm.

"And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Ah...shit, did I say that out loud? And if I did, then which did I say?

"Oh! Nothing. I just..wasn't really expecting to see you.." My attempt to not piss her off seemed to work, as the female Branwen simply turned her back to me and walked away. I let out a light sigh and let my head droop, the sound of footsteps stopping immediately catching my attention.

"...are you just going to stand there?"

...oh shit, she's still here?

"..Uh--"

"The others are currently looking for you." Her voice sounded uninterested to some extent, "...although.."

"Although..?" I began in a curious tone, silently asking for her to continue.

"If Summer's come to the conclusion that you're here in the library..." Raven let out a light sigh, "then I'm willing to bet she'll tell Taiyang and my idiot brother not to search for you."

".. _why_?" I couldn't hide the disbelief in my tone.

And Raven didn't seem to blame me for it, judging by her lack of a response to my tone of voice.

"Knowing her, she probably thought the two of us having a one-on-one conversation would lead to us...bonding." I almost snickered at the look on her face when she said the word, as if she'd wanted to vomit. Her shiver immediately afterwards made it even harder to hold back a laugh.

Aside from that though, I gotta say--leaving me alone in a room with _Raven_...I know you're trying to be helpful, but dick move, Summer. Dick move.

"..I'm guessing that's a no-go?"

"Very much so." were her last words before turning and walking away, leaving me to my thoughts.

"..." I remained silent for a few moments before sighing and running a hand through my hair. I stood up and looked to the side, towards hundreds of books, all neatly organized side by side. I observed each one with a partial degree of interest, but really I was just skimming the titles and seeing if anything, by some miracle, clicked in my mind for some reason, as I lazily drew a finger down each of the books' spines while I read the cover to myself in my mind.

Most of them were ones which I, naturally, had absolutely no clue what they were about.

But at the same time... _one_ stood out to me..

' " _The Four Maidens_ " _..?...why does this feel familiar to me? I mean, it shouldn't feel familiar...right?'_ I was admittedly hesitant to try to remember anything, with memories of both Taiyang's advice, and my past experiences with trying to force recollections, serving as a warning for me not to do so.

...but, I at least ought to _try_...

With a deep breath and calm exhale, I reached for the book, my fingers pinching the top of the spine as I moved it towards me just enough so that I could change my grip and grab the book by the spine and pull it out. I turned the book so that I could see the cover.

It was a hardback copy and the edges of the dark brown cover were somewhat rounded, indicating that it'd been used rather often. The title of the book, the same as on the spine, was present on the cover with one word above the other, all 3 words colored a shade of gold.

My fingers moved to the edge of the cover to turn it, but stopped just before they touched it. My resolve still made, however, I took another breath, though the exhale was quicker...and I opened the book.

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Raven Branwen--_

...Dammit, I'm starting to feel a little pissed off. Now I'm angry at myself for thinking "pissed off". Qrow must be rubbing off on me...and now I'm just irritated by Qrow.

It's funny how things come full circle sometimes.

Speaking of my idiot brother..

"So, you already found him?" He asked, seeming a little irritated. Unfortunately for him, the feeling was mutual, but for a different reason.

"Yes, I did. He's somewhere in the library right now." I responded, my eyes never leaving my book...which I had admittedly hidden the cover of with that of another book...I'm not ashamed.

"You mean you ditched him?" My brother asked with a raised brow.

"I left him to his own devices." I heard a thump on the table a moment after my response, causing me to glance above my book to observe my brother, who had his face promptly planted onto the wooden table.

"..in other words, I more or less came here for nothing..." Qrow's words echoed a sense of exhaustion, but not genuine exhaustion. It was more exhaustion due to laziness than due to any hard work. A sigh soon followed Qrow's comment, as he lifted his head and leaned back in his chair. Though, right after that, my eyes returned to the pages of my guilty ple--...educational novel..

"Aren't you going to go look for _him_?" I asked.

"Eh, I probably _should_. Or at least, that's what Sum would want.." My brow twitched.

"Qrow...you're getting familiar with them. That'd better not become a problem once we graduate." I warned in a cold tone, my brother clicking his tongue in irritation as a response.

"..yeah..yeah, I know..." Qrow replied dejectedly before getting up from his seat and turning around to leave, stopping after one step, "...can I ask you something?"

I mentally groaned to myself and sighed aloud, "What?"

"What exactly do you have against him?" My fingers holding my book tensed ever so slightly in response to my brother's question, though I said nothing, "Ever since we met him, whenever possible, you've tried to avoid being near him. And when you couldn't do that, you've given him a nasty look any time the two of you made eye contact."

"Are you implying that I _don't_ give nasty looks to anyone else?"

"...good point, but that's not what's important here." Qrow quickly noted, "My question is, what's up with you and him?"

"...it's none of your concern." I replied simply, my eyes still not having left my book, though I hadn't turned a single page from when the conversation started, nor read a single word. My brother simply sighed before leaving.

...at last, peace and quie--

"HOLY SHIT!!!"

...All of my hate...

 ** _\--0--0--_**

 _\--Matthew--_

Holy shit...holy _shit..._ HOLY _SHIT!!!_

Specific memories of RWBY came rushing back into my mind. Specifically about the tale of the four Maidens, though it wasn't anything I probably wouldn't have found out about in the book.

Even so, _one_ memory still had me seated on the floor with my eyes wide and breathing a little heavily, my heart racing.

Ozpin is the Wizard.

...it took a bit for me to wrap my head around that, and I'm _still_ not sure I've fully got a handle on that.

Considering that this story's actually not fiction, how old _is_ Ozpin..? Maybe a few centuries...?

..No, never mind that. The more important question is, should I tell him I know? I mean, how am I supposed to tell him "Hey, I know you're the Wizard. How? Well, you and the rest of Remnant, including the world itself, are actually just fictional creations made by--"

" _OW, **FUCK**!!" _I whispered loudly and gripped my forehead, my fingers digging into my hair as a sharp, brief pain tore into my mind due to trying to remember the name of RWBY's creator.

I picked up the book and stood up, looking at the cover for a few moments, my hands shaking a little bit. With a quick exhale, I put the book back where I found it, an empty space awaiting it as I put the book back.

I remained standing in front of so-called fairy tale, pinching the bridge of my nose as I exhaled, knowing that my life just got a lot more...well, a lot more _something..._

 _ **-The End**_

 _A/N: Sup!! Sorry the chapter came out so late, and sorry that it's shorter than usual, but I've had school to worry about. But, it's here now, and I hope you all enjoyed. I don't really have much to talk about, so onward, to the comment responses!!!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **YeTianshi:** Uchiha indeed! But, Matthew won't be OP. Also, he ain't getting the Sharingan, just throwing that out there._

 _ **CaptainC0rv0:** Interesting. Actually, to be honest, RWBY Fanfiction was the first I ever read, with the first story I ever read still being my favorite RWBY Fanfiction._

 _ **youngsavage:** Glad to see the enthusiasm! And I have a feeling not many people, if not none, were expecting me to incorporate elements from Fullmetal. _

_**bwburke94:** Really? I never watched RWBY on Netflix, but I knew that Volumes 1 and 2 were on there. But I had no idea that RWBY came into Netflix on that very same day.._


	11. Chapter 10

**Full Disclosure: I DO NOT own any of the RWBY characters from the canon show. They belong to Rooster Teeth and the late Monty Oum, may he rest in peace. Any characters you see here that aren't in the canon show are my OC's.**

"Blah" **= Spoken**

 _'Blah'_ **Thoughts**

 _"Blah"_ **Dialogue in memory/ Scroll call**

 **P.s.: For this chapter, I'll be doing as a 3rd person narration instead of the previous 1st person narrations, just to see how it goes.**

 **Feel free to tell me if it's good, shite, or "meh".**

* * *

His day, so far, had been taking slow descent in quality since he woke up.

Or, to put it in his words, it was growing to possibly become a "shitfest."

Though, such a description was most likely an exaggeration on his part.

His day started with him on the floor, a bit of drool coming out of his mouth, his blanket only covering one foot, that being the only one left on bed as the rest of his body lay tiredly on the floor of his team's dorm.

He then received the oh-so pleasant wake-up call of his sister landing inches away from his face, causing him to jump back in a newly awakened startle. Though such an action only led to pain, as the back of his head collided with the wooden side of his bed. Immediately afterwards, his sister shot him a somewhat surprised look, but not one of concern.

Rather, more a look that seemed to say "Oh, I missed."

Others may consider this an unfortunate and odd awakening. But for Qrow, such a stroke of bad luck was just par for the course in the series of unlucky events known as his life.

Regardless, Qrow silently swore to get payback on his sister at some point throughout the day, both for the head pain, and the fact that she caused him to wake up early with little chance of falling asleep again.

Fast-forward a few hours from then and Qrow, along with Summer and his sister, heard from Taiyang that he'd left Matthew in the combat training room, which led to his sister saying that they were going to have to look for him and leaving to go to the library, though not before verbally smacking Taiyang once.

With that order of business set, each member of his team went out to search for the hoodie-wearing teen, with the male Branwen searching the cafeteria.

Or at least, he _began_ to head for the cafeteria. Only to stop halfway there as he realized nobody else was in their dorm.

In particular, _his sister_ wasn't in their dorm.

...and like that, he smirked, knowing that it was time for _payback_.

And so, after arriving at his team's dorm, he began his vengeance, taking each of his sister's book, picking out random pages in each, and drawing a terribly drawn shaft on each and every page he selected. And he made damn sure that every single drawing took up the _entire_ page.

Was he being petty? Yes, one might say so.

Childish? Oh, _definitely_.

But was this unexpected of him? Oh, _hell_ no.

By the time he was done, Qrow had drawn a total of around 60 penises in almost all of Raven's books, and he felt _victorious._ Although, he did eventually feel a surge of boredom, causing him to simply start pulling out and lightly tossing the ones he hadn't drawn a shaft in.

At that point, he was already on the phone with Taiyang, freezing and immediately hanging up once Taiyang brought up the idea of Raven finding out what he did. She would likely tear him a new one, assuming she was in a _good_ mood.

With that pleasant thought in his mind, Qrow made his way to the library, talked with his sister, and eventually made his way out of the library, ready to relax in his roo--

"HOLY SHIT!!!"

A familiar voice boomed from within the library, causing Qrow to quickly turn his head in surprise.

"Matthew?" Qrow asked to himself under his breath, cursing silently as he went back into the library. _'Dammit, sis...'_

Qrow reentered the library, noting that a few people were passing by a certain aisle just to see the face of the idiot who actually shouted in a library. Even as he walked by aisles preceding the one the scream originated from, he still heard whispers as he walked by.

Some asked why the person screamed.

Some asked who it was.

And one even asked what kind of dumbass would scream in horror while in a library, in the section specifically containing fairy tales.

Needless to say, that one was Qrow's personal favorite.

As he reached the aisle, he heard an exhale, followed by the sound of a book being slid into the shelves. Qrow peeked over the side of the shelves, curious to see Matthew.

He saw the teen slightly bent over, his hands supporting his body as they pushed against slightly bent knees, as he panted lightly.

"Hey.." Qrow spoke first, causing Matthew's attention to snap towards the second-year Huntsmen-in-Training, "you alright?"

"Yeah..yeah, I'm fine.." Matthew said in between pants, Qrow's eyes narrowing slightly with a lingering sense of doubt, "Why are you here though..?"

"You screamed like a girl, in a library, and I just happened to be nearby. Why _wouldn't_ I have come to either help, or laugh at you?"

"...But which are you here for then?" Matthew deadpanned, causing Qrow to chuckle lightly as he extended a hand towards the Earthling.

"Both, but the latter can wait." Matthew smiled at Qrow's response before taking his hand and being pulled up onto his feet, "You mind telling me what happened here?"

By some divine luck, Qrow didn't seem to notice Matthew's nervous flinch at the question

"...I tripped." Matthew's matter-of-fact tone made Qrow's eyes narrow just a little as a tiny sense of suspicion sparked briefly in his mind before he brushed it off mentally.

"Uh huh..and how exactly did you trip?"

"I accidentally made a few books fall off the shelves while I was taking one out. While I was looking at the book, I guess I walked backwards a little and ended slipping on one of them and falling.." Matthew explained while constantly focusing his gaze on the books, one in particular. Qrow eventually took a glance out of curiosity.

 _'The Four Maidens..?'_ Qrow observed the book with a confused and curious eye for about a second, before mentally shrugging it off and focusing back on the amnesiac.

"Got it..." Qrow began before sighing lightly, "Well, Sum and Tai have been looking for you." He said as he gestured to the library door with his thumb, "Suppose we should go meet up with them, eh?"

Matthew's eyes widened in surprise briefly before he eventually snorted and began to laugh lightly, much to Qrow's confusion.

Which Matthew almost immediately noticed, "O-oh, it's nothing...I just remembered something, that's all. Nothing important though.."

Qrow's eyes narrowed slightly in doubt, but he eventually shook his head and began to make his way towards the library door.

But not before hearing Matthew mumble about something which Qrow, reasonably, failed to understand.

 _'The hell's a "Canada"...?'_

* * *

As they left the library, he silently thanked whatever deity it was that had blessed him in that moment of panic with his newfound ability to bullshit his way through the situation.

Yet, at the same time, something in the back of his mind left him feeling that such an action was actually a familiar one for him?

Odd...but, it saved him from having to tell the truth, so Matthew was grateful nonetheless for this new skill.

"Is your sister coming?" The Earthling suddenly asked, causing the male Branwen to look at him with a brow raised.

"Are you serious?"

"I mean, it'd have felt weird if I didn't ask about her at _all_ , y'know. I'm plenty aware that she couldn't care less about me, but I figured I should still ask, just to make sure."

"Well, that's not _entirely_ accurate." Now it was Matthew's turn to raise a brow.

"You're saying she actually _cares_ about my wellbeing?" Matthew asked in a unconvinced tone.

"Pfft, _god_ no." Qrow said with a chuckle, "I just mean that she cares to the extent that she'd prefer that you _weren't_ here, for some reason." Matthew's face switched to one of surprise, then furrowing his brows in slightly frustrated confusion.

"I get not acknowledging my prescence, but why would she want me to leave..?" Matthew asked himself aloud.

"That's a mystery even _I_ don't know the answer to man.." Qrow said casually, but a detail in his statement didn't go over Matthew's head, as shown in his surprised expression while glancing at Qrow.

 _'He stopped calling me "kid"...'_ The thought made Matthew gain a smile on his face as they continued to walk down the hall.

 _'..I wonder what I should do..?'_ Matthew thought as they walked, turning a corner, _'Now I that I remember Ozpin's secret, what exactly should I do?..I've already decided not to tell her him, but that doesn't exactly help me. Should I see if I can force any memories of RWBY? They don't seem to cause me any pain, for some reason, so maybe I should try?'_

They turned another corner as they walked down another hall, _'Or maybe I should try to see if I can remember anything else, like this weird thing on my shirt..'_ He said as he glanced down at the red-and-white fan on his black t-shirt, _'What exactly does this mean? And why was it important enough for me to wear it on a shirt? Hell, why was it important enough for me to wear it when I **died**..?'_

"Yo, kid!" Qrow's voice snapped Matthew out of his thoughts, causing the Earthling's attention to snap towards Qrow, "You were zoning out pretty hard there..you sure you're alright..?"

Ability, Activate: Bullshit.exe

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine." Matthew reassured with smile.

"Then what'd I just say?"

...Bullshit.exe has stopped working.

"...Uh--"

"Rhetorical question; I know you don't know." Qrow cut Matthew off before sighing lightly, "I'll say it again, and you better be listening this time. Right now's Lunch, so the cafeteria's gonna be filled with students. Since I know you're going to get lost the moment you go in there, I'm going to head in and you're going to follow me closely, but not _too_ closely. Otherwise, that jackass is going to start something.." Qrow hissed the last sentence, to Matthew's confusion.

Said confusion didn't stop him from nodding though.

"Alright, glad to see you actually paid attention to me this time. Let's go." Qrow's statement made Matthew gain a confused expression before gaining a surprised one as he made a realization.

They were right in front of the cafeteria, standing just in front of the entrance:

 _'Wait, when did we **get** here?!! Did I actually zone out **that** deeply?!!' _Matthew thought in complete shock and disbelief. Though the Earthling quickly shook off the feeling as he heard the doors being opened.

He walked in with Qrow and saw the cafeteria flooded with students, all sitting at filled tables, conversing happily with one another, Humans and Faunus alike.

"Follow me." Matthew nodded at Qrow's simple instructions and did just that, the two of them walking down an aisle between several organized tables, with some of the students looking to Matthew with curious eyes, and others not even noticing the Earthling following Team STRQ's scythe user.

After a bit of walking, the two eventually arrived at their destination, that being two empty seats at a table beside Summer and Taiyang.

"Hey! Glad you two finally made it!" Taiyang was the first to greet them, Matthew scratching the back of his head with a nervous laugh and Qrow simply shrugging as they both sat down.

"Found him screaming like a girl in the library after he tripped on some books." Qrow said, causing Matthew's cheeks to immediately gain a strawberry color.

"I--!" Matthew began, but cut himself off for some reason before groaning weakly.

"Did you talk to Raven?" It was Summer who spoke this time.

"..define 'speak'."

"So, no then." Summer said in a seemingly disappointed tone. Little did Qrow, Matthew, and maybe even Taiyang, know that she was actually glad she, the _leader_ , wouldn't be the last one to have one-on-one time with the amnesiac from Earth.

"Yep.." Matthew said simply with a sigh as he fiddled with fingers.

"Hey there, hotshots!" A female voice spoke up from behind Summer, causing the 3 Team STRQ members and Matthew to look up at who it was.

It was a girl with dark red hair that reached halfway down her back, bronze eyes and a fair complexion, wearing a Beacon Academy uniform. She was slightly taller than Raven and had 3 freckles on each cheek.

 _'..something about her..?'_ Matthew thought as a small spark went off in the back of his mind, for reasons he didn't know or understand.

"Oh, hey Scarlet!" Summer greeted in a cheerful tone. The newly named Scarlet lightly rubbed the top of Summer's head, causing the young leader of Team STRQ to childishly pout her cheeks at the action.

"Now, now, Little Rose, we both know that I'm going to keep doing that for as long as I can!" Scarlet said playfully with a warm, cheerful grin. She then directed her attention to the other members of Team STRQ.

"Tai! Still failing at gaining a love life, I see?" Her cheerful tone sharply contrasted the question she asked, as well as its effect on Team STRQ's martial artist, as his smile turned to a frown before he let his head fall on the table with a groan, "..I'll take that as 'Yes'. Especially considering that the lady herself isn't here right now. Speaking of whom," She directed her attention to Qrow, "How's it going, Wolfman?"

"You're never going to stop calling me that, are you?" Qrow deadpanned, Matthew tilting his head slightly in confusion.

"Hey, not my fault!" Scarlet put up her hands in an attempted gesture of innocence, "..if you're to point blame at anyone, it's Loverboy." She said with a laugh as she pointed to the still-depressed Taiyang, who groaned lightly in response. After lightly for a few seconds, she finally directed her attention to the confused Earthling, "..this is a new face, though. Who might you be, kid?"

A tick suddenly appeared on Matthew's forehead as he held back the urge to shout angrily.

" _This,_ " Qrow interjected as he lightly disheveled Matthew's hair. Or at least, he _slightly_ disheveled, considering that the amnesiac's hair was already a wild mess, "is Matthew. He just so happens to have amnesia, and Ozpin's having us train him how to fight in order to trigger his memories."

"Ah, gotcha. So, you're saying that he used to fight?" Scarlett's arms were now crossed as she asked her question in a curious tone, wearing a matching expression.

"Pretty much, yeah." Qrow confirmed in his usual relaxed tone. Scarlet hummed with her eyes closed for a few seconds before opening them and regaining her smile.

"I see. Well then, once you get your memory back, maybe you could look me up if you're ever in Mistral?" She suggested with a smile, her attention suddenly snapping to her left as she looked at a table off in the distance, "Ah, crap! I have to get back to my team! Uh, nice meeting you Matt!" She said her goodbye as she walked off to her team's table.

 _'Mistral..?'_ Matthew asked himself curiously as he watched her walk away.

Then, it happened.

Even though this part of memory was already regained, he felt something course through his mind like electricity as he connected mental dots to form a theory that he still had a bit of difficulty believing himself.

 _'No way...'_ He said to himself as he watched the redhead confidently stride to and eventually reach her team's table. _'...Red hair..Mistral...and a different name..'_

 _'..IS THAT PYRRHA'S **MOM**?!!' _He almost let out a noise of shock and surprise, but managed to hold himself back just in time.

"..You checking her out?" Qrow asked with a shit-eating grin, snapping Matthew out of his train of thought.

"Huh? N-no, she just...seemed familiar.."

"Meh, can't really blame you. She calls us hotshots, but she's quite the badass herself, if you ask me." Qrow's remark about Scarlet had Matthew feeling both surprised, yet not surprised at the same time.

He was, of course, quite surprised by the prescence of Pyrrha's mother in Beacon Academy, essentially due to the fact that Pyrrha's family had never been shown in the show, nor were they alluded to or mentioned in any way. And now her mother appears as a student studying at Beacon Academy at the same time as Team STRQ? It sounded like the kind of thing that would happen in a fanfiction.

And her personality was plenty different from her daughter's. Or at least, her speech was. The way Pyrrha spoke always had a sense of formality to it, but not _too_ much formality. But with her using phrases like something "sounding grand!", one could tell it was there.

But her mother? She was casual, cool as ice, and, if anyone, honestly talked like Yang, only without the puns!!

"..Does she have a nickname?" Matthew couldn't help but ask.

"As matter of fact, she does: 'Ms. Untouchable', Scarlet Thetis.." Qrow said with a light chuckle before getting up out of his seat, "I'll go get us some food. Anything you want in particular?"

"Uh...just a sandwich and some orange juice, I guess.." Matthew requested casually with a shrug, Qrow nodding and walking off to get their food.

"..So.." Summer spoke up, gaining Matthew's attention, "I'm guessing you and Raven didn't hit it off at the library..?" She asked with a nervous smile, Matthew mentally swearing with a smile that the resemblance between her and her daughter was uncanny.

"Our 'conversation' didn't even last a minute..so yeah, I'd say we're not exactly pals.." Matthew let his voice trail off into a grumble at the end, but Summer understood what he said, regardless.

"Yeah..she has a hard time warming up to people..." Summer stopped herself at the sight of Matthew's deadpanned stare, "..okay, she _tries_ notto warm up to people. But that doesn't mean it's impossible to be friends with her." Summer said with a smile.

"Friends with _her_ , huh.." Matthew mumbled, but proceeded to keep his mouth shut from saying anything further on the topic of Raven.

Instead...

"..is Taiyang okay?" Both the amnesiac and the leader's attention was then directed towards the blonde, who still had his head down on the table.

"Uh..." Summer leaned in close to Taiyang's head, pulling back a little faster with a relieved sigh, "it's fine, he's just asleep."

"Good. Now, we don't have to hear him moan about how he can't get in bed with my sister." Qrow spoke up from behind them while carrying a tray with several food items, before taking a seat next to Matthew. He passed a glass of orange juice and a sandwich to Matthew, who smiled and thanked him in return.

"I'll have you know that I'm classier than that, _Birdbrain_.." Taiyang muttered as he rode his head just enough for his eyes to be visible, a weak glare aimed directly at Qrow, who proceeded to shrug and take a bite out of an apple he got for himself.

"Doesn't mean the idea of it isn't gross."

"Wait, the idea of Taiyang doing it with your sister, or the general idea of your sister in a relationship?" Matthew asked with a brow raised out of curiosity.

"Both." The male Branwen wasted no time with his firm reply, "..and besides, I'd say Tai would be a one-night stand, at _best_." He quickly added, the aforementioned blonde's antennae twitching angrily.

"Oh, you little...!" Taiyang began to yell at Qrow, but Matthew had already zoned out, again.

 _'..Qrow's right. The idea of Raven in a romantic and/or sexual relationship actually gives me goosebumps, a little...ok, I **definitely** don't think that's how you're supposed to react when thinking about a person's love life.' _Matthew sighed internally, a thought then crossing his mind a moment after.

 _'.."person", huh...hard to believe I used to think these people were all fictional characters. And here I am, living out a new life in a world I thought to be just a story...it feels weird..but at the same time...'_ Matthew took a moment to glance to the members of Team STRQ. Taiyang and Qrow were arguing, though only Taiyang looked bothered. Qrow wore a smug smile the whole time. Meanwhile, Summer just laughed at their antics, causing Matthew to gain a relaxed smile on his face.

 _'I don't think I want to be anywhere else..'_

 _ **The End**_

 _A/N: Fook me m8, this chapter took a while to get out. Admittedly, I mainly had trouble since, at multiple points throughout the process of writing this chapter, I got to a certain point in the chapter and kind blanked out after thinking "...what now?"_

 _As I said before, I have future plans for "Newcomer", but not that many "in the moment" plans. Really, most of this'll be me writing by the seat of my pants. Like Akira Toriyama, but nowhere near as good._

 _Anywho, I don't really have much else to say._

 _To the responses!!!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **youngsavage:** Admittedly, Qrow's also my favorite, but in terms of personality. As far as favorite character by fighting style though, I gotta go with the gun-boots (Good ol' Merc). Thank you!_

 _ **YeTianshi:** He won't be OP mainly because I want to show development in his skills as a fighter. Right now, he's at what we would consider a pretty good fighter on Earth; but that means SQUAT when compared to Hunters, or even Hunters-in-training. He'll definitely get better as the story progresses, but it'll be an uphill climb. Glad you enjoyed the chapter!!_

 _See you all next chapter!!!_


	12. Chapter 11

**_Ha_! Bet you guys weren't expecting a chapter from this story with a 8k word count! **

**WOO!!**

 **Phew...ok, moving on--I'm not putting a disclosure here this time, nor in any other chapter after this one, because you guys are already PLENTY aware I don't own RWBY.**

 **So yeah.**

 **Also, completely unrelated side-note, I will be talking about a possible story, but I'll go into more detail about it at the end of the chapter. Here's a hint though:**

 **It's not a RWBY story.**

 **Anywho, with that said, onward with le chapter!**

* * *

"Again!"

With gritted teeth, Matthew stood up once again, stumbling a bit from the previous hits he'd taken before forcing himself upright, taking a quick inhale and exhale to calm himself as much as he could.

It didn't do much to actually calm him down, but luckily for him, the action went uninterrupted by his teacher, allowing for a few seconds for him to grow just a little more accustomed to the sore feeling in most of his muscles.

But all good things had to come to an end, after all.

Matthew tensed the muscles in his legs, ignoring the urge to wince at the moderare pain, and charged towards the blonde, who made no attempt to enter a combat stance.

Taiyang smoothly side-stepped Matthew's punch, going straight for a counterattack with a right hook; however, the Earthling was quick to react, almost instinctively tilting his body slightly to the left, Taiyang's punch flying by his ear with a piercing sound.

Using quick footwork, Matthew distanced himself from Taiyang, a small squeaking sound from his shoes filling the room as he forced himself to stop. Sweat ran down his forehead and dripped both off his nose and his chin, brown eyes focused on the blonde Huntsmen-in-Training, who stood casually, but with a tense aura surrounding him.

 _'A good martial artist does not become tense, but ready..'_

The sudden reference to the Dragon made Matthew smile just a bit on the inside, but he quickly shook the thought off, deciding that he could enjoy what little nostalgia he had later.

As he was about to take a step forward, his teacher suddenly charged, leaving Matthew in a state of surprise and wide open for an attack, a state which Taiyang tried to take advantage of.

Unfortunately for him, whatever battle senses the amnesiac seemed to have kicked in as he almost immediately snapped back into focus as he slightly lowered his body to gain firmer footing, eyes focused dead on the blonde headed straight for him.

Taiyang led with a flying side kick, which Matthew swiftly avoided by moving to the side with agile footwork, bouncing slightly in place for a few moments before steadying himself. Taiyang quickly recovered and began to send a series of punches towards Matthew, who managed to just barely dodge all of them, the Earthling making sure to keep his eyes open and focused on the attacks as they came zooming at his face.

 _'All of his punches are smooth and flow really well. One attack allows for a natural introduction to the other, and the process repeats over and over again...'_ Matthew thought with a frustrated look on his face as he continued to dodge punches, _'As much as I wanna break the rythym he's building with his chain of attacks, it's hard to find an opening...unless..?'_

The flame of determination in Matthew's eyes burned brighter as he swiftly dodged a punch, immediately moving with its momentum as he grabbed Taiyang's forearm and put another hand under the blonde's shoulder, placing one foot far back enough to make it hit against Taiyang's, disrupting the blonde's balance.

STRQ's martial artist could only let out a brief sound of surprise and confusion before getting flipped over the amnesiac's shoulder, his back hitting the floor with a hard thud, the sound of the impact on the metal floor echoing slightly on the walls of the combat training room.

"..how did you...?" Taiyang began in genuine confusion and surprise, a shocked expression on his face. Though he almost felt like smiling at the sight of a matching expression on the Earthling's face, as said teen breathed heavily with sweat running down his face, blinking at a moderate pace.

"I-I...Hell if I know..." Matthew muttered, his grip on Taiyang loosening as he lost focus on his hold on Taiyang. His mind, at that moment, was somewhat of a swirling whirlpool, thoughts running wild as he tried to find the answer to a single question:

 _'How...how the hell did I do that?'_

The technique he used had left his mind racing, as it wasn't even what he _intended_ to do. Really, he intended to try to utilize a counterattack in the form of a jab once Taiyang had extended his arm to a certain degree. But once the moment presented itself, an...odd, feeling overcame him. Almost instinctive, really. Like his mind was thinking of a plan, but his body knew what to do and acted before he could act out the plan in his head.

It left him in a surprised daze; unfortunately for him though, that didn't mean the fight was over.

"Agh!" Matthew let out a surprised and somewhat pained shout as he felt a hand jerk his foot off from the ground, causing him to fall flat on his back on the metal floors of the combat training room, a pained cough leaving his mouth as he winced a moment later, "Fuck, that hurt..."

"SWEAR!" Summer shouted angrily from the stands, a shaking finger pointed accusingly at the Earthling. A smirk then came onto his face as he triumphantly pointed to the ceiling.

"Ha! Jokes on you! I don't even _have_ any lien!" He confidently announced. He'd been somewhat hesitant to curse with Summer nearby at first, but as soon as he realized that he had _no_ lien to give her if he ever did, it was as if a lock to a door holding back every urge to curse he'd ever had since he stopped had broken, much to his relief and smug satisfaction.

Though, a moment of silence followed his declaration of, what he saw as, victory, before a sigh was let out nearby.

"I don't think that's something you should be celebrating, man." Taiyang noted as he stood up, then rolling his neck around, causing it to release several popping sounds, seemingly followed by a feeling of satisfaction, judging by the relaxed smile and posture Taiyang gained.

"It is for now, at least!" Matthew said with a grin before placing his hands just above his head and pushing upward with his legs, his back and legs rising off the ground. He then tried to force his legs forward in an attempt to land in a crouched position.

Though instead, he not only landed in the position he was in at the beginning, but he also ended up slamming his head _hard_ on the floor.

"Ow! Fuck a _duck_!" He spat out painfully as he rolled to the side, clutching the back of his head with both hands. This result was immediately met with roaring laughter from the stands and contrastingly dead silence from Taiyang, who looked at the Earthling with a dull expression.

"Hahahahaha _ha_! Oh man, I don't know what's funnier-how creative you are with curse words, or how bad you screw up at the end of these training sessions!" Qrow managed to get out in between fits of laughter so hard that he was left with tears in his eyes and both hands clutching his stomach as he leaned forward in his seat.

"Qrow! What have I told you about encouraging bad habits!" Summer nagged Qrow, who looked at her with a lazy smile.

"Do it in the form of sarcastic comments?"

"That was Raven!" Said female Branwen rose a brow at the comment, taking her attention away from the book in her hand.

"I don't remember-"

"It was during our first year here, and _don't_ try to act like you never said it..!" Summer quickly cut in, Raven pausing before slowly returning to her book in guilty silence.

"Ugh.." Matthew groaned as he sat up slowly, one hand still massaging the back of his head, causing him to wince and sharply inhale with a hiss, while the other lay calmly on his leg.

"You need any help?" Taiyang offered in a concerned tone, though he'd already gotten a few quiet laughs out of his system when Matthew wasn't looking.

"Nah, I'm fine. Just..just give me a minute." Matthew said with a light sigh, a dull pain running through most of his body as he finally took his hand away from the back of his head and let out an exhale rich with exhaustion.

"It's good to see that you're all up so early in the morning." Matthew's, as well as Team STRQ's, attention snapped to the calm voice behind them as the sound of footsteps approached, along with the occasional clang of a long metallic object lightly impacting the cool metal floor.

"Professor Ozpin!"

"Morning, Professor."

"Hey, Professor."

"Good morning, Professor Ozpin."

The greetings from Team STRQ went across in order, Summer and Taiyang sounding the most enthusiastic. Or at least, the most chipper.

Contrastingly, Qrow had a lazy tone with an equally languid smile, while his sister wore her ever-present blasé expression, only taking a moment to glance at the Headmaster before returning to her book.

For the few seconds that she did, at least, as, a few moments after Ozpin entered the room, Raven set the book face-down on her lap, still open.

"Morning, Professor.." Matthew said as he forced himself up onto his feet, pushing his hands against his back as he straightened his posture, causing his back to release a satisfying series of popping sounds as Matthew kept his equally content voice muffled by his closed lips, though a smile present on his face as he did so.

Ozpin chuckled lightly as he eventually came to a stop just a few feet away from Taiyang and Matthew, the latter admittedly slightly raising a brow as he noted the lack of a black mug's prescence in Ozpin's hand.

"It's good to see that you're adjusting well, Matthew." Ozpin noted with a smile, his brown eyes behind his glasses observing the amnesiac with a humored expression before turning his attention to Taiyang, "How is he progressing with his training, Mr. Xiao Long?"

"He's..improving at a faster rate than I expected, to be honest. Though he's _definitely_ still got a lot to learn. Like, for example, not giving his opponent an opportunity to knock him flat on his back-like he does with _every_ training session." Taiyang noted with a chuckle, Matthew pouting as he mumbled a few curses to the side with a light shade of pink rushing his cheeks.

"I see." Ozpin noted with a chuckle of his own before slowly shaking his head with a smile, "Indeed, that is good to hear."

"..so, did you just come here to check up on me?" Matthew asked.

"Well, that is not the sole reason for my visit. Rather, I'm here for Team STRQ." Ozpin replied calmly as he took a glance at the stands for a moment before returning his attention to the two teens in front of him.

"Us?" Summer asked from the stands, Ozpin turning his attention to the white cloaked leader.

"Indeed. I have a mission for you four. As soon as you all finish here, please meet me in my office as soon as possible so that I may further discuss the details of your mission with you all." Ozpin elaborated.

"But what about Matthew?" Summer asked in a concerned tone, the teen in question unconsciously sticking his hands in his pockets.

"I'll be fine here." Matthew reassured, though he noticed Summer wasn't too convinced, a worried look still ever present on her face, with a concerned glimmer in her silver eyes, "It's not like I'll be wandering the streets of Vale. I'm sitting nice and cozy in a school filled with teenagers and adults who fight monsters. For a _living_." He emphasized while slightly leaning forward, "..even if the teenagers aren't professionals yet."

"...He's got a point there, Sum." Qrow noted with a shrug, Summer shooting him an pout-like look not nearly threatening enough to be called a glare.

"You-!" Summer began, but stopped at the sound of Matthew snickering, the Earthling quickly covering his mouth with a hand as he noticed Summer direct her faux-glare in his direction.

That didn't mean he stopped laughing, though.

Ozpin cleared his throat with a fist covering his mouth, causing both Matthew and Summer to stop and laugh nervously for a moment before letting their laughter trail off into silence.

"...we'll be there as soon as possible, Professor." Taiyang said with an amused smile as he nodded his head towards the headmaster of Beacon Academy, the professor nodding in return with a smile before turning and leaving the combat room, a slightly awkward feeling hanging in the air as the room went silent.

Matthew would've been lying if he'd said the sound of a book slamming shut didn't startle him.

"I suppose we should get going now." Raven said as she rose from her seat, sparing Matthew a glance, "Try not to break anything while we're gone." Raven's blasé attitude made Matthew gain an agitated tick on his forehead, one eyebrow twitching as he watched the female Branwen leave through the doors by the stands. Qrow soon followed suit, casually waving the Earthling goodbye before leaving the room.

"Uh.." Summer began awkwardly, likely trying to think of something to say to the amnesiac before leaving, "..Peace be with you!" Summer exclaimed with a nervous look, as if she'd just said the first thing that came to mind, before rushing out same the door the Branwen siblings left through.

A sharp twinge ran through Matthew's head as a voice played in his mind, as if he were listening to his memories in the form of an audio recording.

 _"No, I was going through mass, and I was batting like 400. And then, in the middle of mass, the priest said 'Peace be with you', and everyone said 'and with your spirit'."_ The voice concluded in a tone that sounded baffled beyond belief.

 _'What's up with his voice?'_ Matthew thought as he continued to listen to the voice.

 _"And I was, like, the one pre y2k asshole going 'and also with you!'-What?! Huh?! Wha?!"_ Matthew was left puzzled by the voice in his head, tilting his head with an expression, the emotion plain on his face.

"What's that supposed to mean...?" He muttered to himself, though he quickly snapped his attention back to Summer, a little worried, "Oh, Summer! Sorry, that's wasn't-aand, she already left...yep." He said with a nod and an internal sigh, popping the "p" at the end.

"...Are you ok, man?" Matthew's attention snapped to Taiyang in surprise, the latter observing the Earthling with a raised brow and a somewhat concerned look on his face, with a tone of voice to match.

"Y-yeah...yeah, I'm fine.." Matthew internally cursed himself for stuttering a little, though he hid his frustration well behind a reassuring smile shined in the blonde's direction, "You should get going though.."

"..." Taiyang remained silent for a few moments, blue orbs looking directly into dark brown ones before his eyes shut as he tilted his head downward, running a hand back through his hair with a sigh, "...Fine..but take care of yourself, alright?"

Matthew did his best to conceal his surprise, nodding quickly in response, turning away from Taiyang and walking towards his hoodie, which he'd left near the edge of the combat circle when he'd begun training just a few hours earlier.

As he walked, Matthew heard the sound of other footsteps mixed in with his, the sound getting increasingly further from him. By the time he'd reached his hoodie, the room was dead silent, aside from a dull, barely noticeable hum, likely from air conditioning, or something along those lines.

The Earthling let out a breath he'd unknowingly been holding as he reached down to grab his hoodie, his fingers stopping just a foot away from it. After a moment of stillness, he let out a slightly frustrated sigh, pulling his hand away and taking a seat next to his hoodie, immediately placing his head into one of his hands, his fingers passing smoothly along his slightly tanned forehead, sweat running down it.

He balled his other hand into a fist as he felt the urge to grit his teeth, but resisted it. He didn't want to admit it, but he knew it was getting to him. He wanted to ignore the feeling, but he could feel it claw its way into the forefront of his mind not too long after he'd tried to ignore the feeling.

His memories.

Though not strong enough to make him panic, a desire to regain them as soon as possible still burned within him, to the point where it not only frustrated him that he didn't know how to regain his memories, but also that Taiyang's advice about patience meant he'd have to take even _longer_ to regain them.

His journey had gotten even longer, and he couldn't even see where the path started.

 _'Dammit...'_ He thought in frustration, _'And as if that weren't bad enough, every time I regain my memories it hurts like he-...'_ He stopped himself short as a realization popped into his mind, soon having to resist the urge to facepalm, _'wait...the memory from a minute ago! It didn't hurt that much!'_ He exclaimed in his mind, dark brown eyes widening and eyebrows rising in realization, though said eyes and brows narrowed and furrowed respectively as he pondered further, _'But why? All the other ones hurt like hell, so why didn't this one?...maybe only certain kinds of memories hurt? Or maybe the amount of pain for each memory is just random?'_

The last thought made him shiver just a little before drooping his head in depression.

 _'If that's the case, then that just adds another problem to my list...'_ Matthew thought, finally letting out a tired sigh, _'Great..'_

* * *

"Do you honestly think he'll end up breaking something _just_ because we were gone?" Taiyang asked a brow raised, his arms crossed.

"You don't think he will?" Raven asked incredulously, a small smirk appearing on her face just a few moments before Summer frowned weakly.

"Guys, can we not talk about him? I'm already worried enough about him right now.." She said as her eyes trailed down to her feet, shifting uncomfortably as she felt her eyebrows furrow and her silver eyes narrow. They then widened abruptly as she felt a hand lightly smack her back, causing the leader to look to her right and see a reassuring smile below a pair of equally familiar red eyes.

"He'll be fine, Sum. No need to worry about him like a momma bird."

"Wha?! Qrow!" Summer's cheeks turned a shade of pink before she dealt Qrow a palm to the side of the face, though not with the amount of impact she wanted. Instead of hitting him hard enough to make him shuffle just a bit, she ended up sending him into the side of the elevator, his body sticking cartoonishly to the inside walls of the elevator like a sticker, eliciting a snicker out of his sister and a sigh out of his partner.

A ding preceded the mechanical humming sound of the elevator doors opening, Ozpin sitting in his table at the opposite end of the room, seemingly having just noticed their arrival, a black coffee mug in one hand and a sheet of paper in the other, his cane leaning gently against his side of the table.

"Welcome...I do hope the journey up here was a pleasant one?" The Headmaster asked after noting Qrow's current status as a sticker on the elevator wall, Summer quickly noticing what he meant and laughing nervously while lightly scratching her cheek with a finger as she stepped out of the elevator.

"The ride up was better than usual." Raven said in a satisfied tone with a smirk as she followed Summer out of the elevator, heels clacking slowly in conjunction with her pace.

"..you want some help, man?" Taiyang eventually asked the male Branwen, making sure to keep one foot where the elevator door would close so that it would remain open. Taiyang never got a response Qrow's body slowly separated from the wall, making a thud as it hit the floor of the elevator, "...okay, I'll just leave you to it.." The blonde said before stepping off the elevator, Qrow somewhat sluggishly standing to his feet before joining the rest of his team.

"..Well, now that you're all here, I suppose we can get started with discussing the details of your mission." Ozpin said as he placed the paper in his hand off to the side of his table, then grabbing a black Scroll that lay on the same side he placed the sheet of paper. Upon activating the Scroll, Ozpin inserted it in a depressed area on the table, the device fitting perfectly in the spot, insertion followed by technological sounds and a high pitched hum before a blue hologram suddenly appeared before the members of Team STRQ.

The hologram was of a forest, encompassing a large circular area in front of Ozpin's table, with trees of varying heights, though most were rather tall. The hologram itself was surprisingly detailed, the leaves on each tree capable of being separated individually if one were to look closely enough.

Raven simply rose both eyebrows in surprise, but said nothing, eyes of red barely widening at the sight of the hologram.

Her teammates, on the other hand...

" _Whoa_..." Summer began, her voice filled with awe, a similar expression of amazement present on her face as her silver eyes twinkled with curiosity, "just... _whoa_..."

"What she said..." Both male members of Team STRQ commented simultaneously, wearing the same expression as their leader, minus the twinkling eyes, Ozpin chuckling lightly at their reaction.

"I'm glad to see you're pleased with it. Truthfully, I was uncertain, at first, about installing the technology to produce a hologram in my table...but after seeing your reactions..I think it's safe to say I made the wiser decision." Ozpin finished with a chuckle and an amused smile.

"..So, what of our mission, Professor?" Raven eventually spoke up, breaking the rest of her team out of their awe-stricken daze as they quickly shook their heads to snap out of it.

"Ah, straight to the point, I see." Ozpin noted, Raven's eyes slightly narrowing. Noticing Raven's disguised glare, Summer nervously shuffled around a bit, holding back the subconscious urge to nervously laugh, "Very well..I believe you four are familiar with the area shown in front of you, the Forest of Life?"

Silence filled the room as recognition did the same, none of Team STRQ's members speaking up at first about the mission that led to the Earthling's arrival at Beacon Academy.

"You needn't answer that. Truthfully, it was a rhetorical question. What I do want to discuss, however," Ozpin clasped his fingers together and let his elbows rest on the table, "is the recent surge in the Grimm population within the forest."

Summer could've sworn she _heard_ the aura around Raven tense, and it made her tense just a little bit as well, though not for the exact same reason.

"As you all know, the Forest of Life was previously well known for its nigh vacancy of Grimm, resulting in the eventual construction of a village near the forest, named Burrow."

Summer's eyes warmed at the thought of the village. It had only been about an hour prior to finding Matthew that the members of Team STRQ passed through Burrow village. They'd already been on a mission to help the village with supplies, due to a shortage occurring after a few containers meant to have been delivering food had disappeared. It had only been around half an hour before they'd heard his scream. As soon as that was heard in the distance, Summer was the first to take off, followed by her team, to go save whoever it was that needed to be.

In the end, Summer killed an Ursa, they found an amnesiac, and the rest, as one would say, was history.

"Your mission is to diminish the Grimm population within the forest as much as possible. If complete extermination is within your reach during the mission, then you are to take it; however, if you find that there too many for that to be possible, than you are to pull back. Are we clear?"

All 4 second-year students nodded, though Summer's was slightly hesitant, and the only detail that was off about Raven's was that she was the last to, seemingly encapsulated within her own thoughts.

"Good. A Bullhead will be ready for you four in a few minutes. In the meantime, feel free to whatever you please as you wait."

"Yes, Professor."

"Copy that, Professor."

Summer childishly glared at Qrow's refusal to join them in unison before they made their way towards the elevator, Taiyang and Qrow entering first. Summer went to just a few steps away from the elevator.

"Ms. Branwen," Summer stopped in her tracks, and the ceased sound of heal clacking behind her let her know that her partner had done the same, "may I speak with you for a moment? I promise, it will not take up too much time."

Summer couldn't help but slightly nibble at her bottom lip as she watched Raven observe Ozpin for a few moments, as if trying to find some underlying intention in his words through eye contact alone; though, if such was her intention, then she did well to hide it, as Summer quickly brushed off the thought. She knew her partner had a tendency towards being cynical, or as Raven always corrected, "realistic", but she didn't think Raven wouldn't trust Ozpin.

He was their Headmaster, after all.

"..." Raven remained silent for a few moments before agreeing in her usual response, the Branwen's gaze moving towards Summer's, "I'll be down soon."

Summer hesitated for a moment before nodding gently, making her way towards the elevator, alongside Qrow and Taiyang, her gaze locked onto Raven walking calmly towards Ozpin for as long now as time allowed it, before the doors to elevator closed with the same ding as when they'd arrived.

* * *

"Please, feel free to grab a chair, Ms. Branwen."

She didn't want to.

An opportunity like this was something Raven both slightly hoped for and, while she would never admit it, feared. A chance to speak with Ozpin alone, just the two of them, and she'd have been lying if she'd said she wasn't the slightest bit on edge. Her time spent being raised by the tribe, years of fighting and stealing, had honed her instincts for sensing danger around her, as well as being able to tell when people were lying.

Though, the latter was likely partially due to her cynical, or "realistic", as she'd put it, view of the world.

And, while she never felt in danger while around Ozpin, nor did she feel he was ever lying, she couldn't help but feel something was... _off_ , about the man.

He felt wise, almost _too_ wise at times, but he _was_ a trained Huntsman, capable enough to the point where he became a Headmaster of an academy meant to train warriors, so him being wise wasn't really anything that concerning to Raven.

But at the same time...the feeling that something was _off_ about the man continued to nibble away at the back of her mind.

"..." Raven silently pulled up a chair from near the end of the room, bringing it to just over 6 feet away from Ozpin's table. She sat down in it, having to resist the urge to repeatedly bounce a leg on the front part of her sole out of nervousness. Though she was very quick to regain her composure, her mind settling mere moments after she sat down.

"So," Ozpin broke the silence, "I take it you're wondering why it is I wanted to speak with you?"

Raven almost agreed, but had a feeling he wanted more than that. The decision was risky, but she had a feeling he was thinking the same thing as her. While she normally wasn't all for risk taking, this was an occasion where she would have to do so..

"..I'm assuming this is about the boy, Professor?" Raven finally answered, Ozpin raising a brow at her response before chuckling lightly. The Branwen slightly tilted her head in confusion, set just a little bit on edge by his response, wondering if she'd said something wrong, "Professor..?"

"Oh, my apologies. I simply find it amusing that you still refer to young Matthew as a 'boy', even though he is the same age as you.." Ozpin noted, Raven's eyebrows furrowing a bit, "but yes, he is indeed what I wished to discuss with you here today. I wanted to speak with you in particular because you, Ms. Branwen, bear the sharpest mind out of your entire team."

Raven hid it well on the outside, but she was tense on the inside. She knew what Ozpin really meant by those words, and that fact alone sent a shiver down her spine, especially since she'd done it just then. He really meant that she was the best at seeing people's true character. Or at least, seeing emotions they had buried, or been trying to hide, as well as seeing the true meaning behind people's words.

"From what I've been able to gather through seeing young Matthew experience just one flashback, as well as hearing the details of it from him moments after, I've come to the conclusion that he is a somewhat.. _troubled_ , individual, and it's possible that the recent surge of Grimm within the Forest of Life has something to do with him."

"...and what, may I ask, does that have to do with me in particular, Professor?"

"Because I have a feeling you've reached the same conclusion."

Raven tensed again, as if she wasn't already, internally cursing the Headmaster's phrasing.

 _' "Had a feeling?" Yeah, right.'_

No, she _knew_ he was almost, if not completely, certain that she had thought the same thing. Why he was seemingly trying to bait her, or so she suspected, however, remained unknown to the red-eyed swordswoman.

"..I'll admit, the thought crossed my mind, but I thought nothing of it." Raven said with a casual shrug, making sure to not only keep eye-contact with Ozpin, but also her cool.

"I see..." Ozpin went silent for a moment, seemingly pondering his response, "..Ms. Branwen, what do you think of young Matthew?"

 _'Shit..'_ She couldn't help but curse in her mind, shoving the urge to click her tongue in frustration down her throat. She knew she had to pick her words carefully, believing her response could very well heavily impact the rest of her stay at Beacon.

Be it by being told to avoid contact with Matthew.

Or by being told to get more familiar with him.

But what would work best? The truth, that she didn't trust him, may cause Ozpin to gain a negative, maybe suspicious view towards her, and that could potentially jeopardize the goal she and her brother had when they applied to go to Beacon Academy.

But lying wasn't much better either. She had a feeling Ozpin would see right through artificial words, with brown eyes behind glasses that seemed to look into her soul. And yet, she knew she had to make a choice, and fast, in order to avoid suspicion.

Taking a deep breath in her mind, she kept her calm expression and responded.

"I believe he is exactly what you say he is, Professor-- a troubled boy, with the potential to excel in combat." She truthfully didn't really believe in the part about him excelling in combat, but figured she needed to add _something_ in case Ozpin asked for what else she thought of him.

"And is that all you think of him?"

She was starting to get irritated with how often she had to hide her desire to change facial features, a want to furrow her eyebrows in confusion having to be quelled within her.

 _'What else could he want?'_ She wondered.

"Need I think more of him, Professor? Our mission is to train him, and only that." She replied, Ozpin humming quietly as he seemed to ponder her response, his eyes moving down from Raven's to his table. Raven grew tenser little by little with every moment Ozpin spent looking at his table in silence.

And she became worried at the sight of a smile on his face.

"In that case, I believe I may have a proposition for you, Ms. Branwen."

* * *

"So."

Thud.

"Fucking."

Thud.

" _Good_."

Thud. All 3 times, a ringing sound echoed as Matthew's plate shook each time he brought a fist down onto the table with smile.

It'd been about an hour since Team STRQ left for their mission, and Matthew had seen them leave through the cafeteria window as he munched down on a slice of apple pie.

It surprised him a little that not even Summer came by talk to him one last time before leaving, but he figured Taiyang or Qrow, though he leaned more towards it being the blond, likely convinced her not to worry too much about him.

But what bothered him more was the seemingly irritated look on Raven's face as they walked towards the exit point of Beacon Academy's courtyard. Matthew was used to her unimpressed, blasé look, which she seemed to have at almost all times, which would occasionally be replaced by a look that seemed to question if the person she was talking to was a dumbass.

That look was most often directed at either the amnesiac himself or Taiyang.

It was never directed at her brother, Matthew jokingly figuring she'd likely already come to the early conclusion that the answer to the question was yes, in her own mind.

Yet the look she had when they left the school was..different. She seemed irritated. Not pissed, but more seemingly a mix of dull anger and agitation, her emotion shown as she walked ahead of her teammates without sparing them a glance.

 _'Wonder what was up with her...?'_ Matthew wondered as he chewed and swallowed another piece of a slice of apple pie. He couldn't help but feel a pleasant shiver up his spine at the flavor, a gleeful smile on his face as he enjoyed the dessert. In mere moments, he finished the slice and walked over to the counter where the lunch lady waited, an empty plate in his hands and a deadpanned expression on her face.

She had slightly tanned skin and deep blue eyes, with black hair pulled back, and bangs held from coming forward by a pale lavender banana tied around the back of her head. She wore a Beacon-issued uniform for her job--a plain black shirt with Beacon Academy's symbol emblazoned on her left shoulder in blue, matching pants and shoes, as well as a pale gray apron.

"Let me guess--another slice?" She asked with a raised brow, the Earthling nodding gleefully before she let out a light chuckle. She reached under the counter, the see-through glass allowing Matthew's eyes to follow her hand as she grabbed a plate with a slice of apple pie and placed it onto the counter. Matthew reached for the plate, but stopped short as he heard her tell him to wait, "Now, I know you've got a hell of a stomach there, but enough's enough, alright? Can't have ya poppin' like a balloon, now." He couldn't help but smile both at the prospect of eating the slice and her accent, which occasionally left something deep in his mind buzzing a dull tune, though he thought nothing of it.

All that mattered to him in that moment was devouring what he considered to be his new favorite treat.

So what if it may or may not have been his 10th slice? He didn't really care, and the way his tongue hungrily licked his lips proved that.

With a quick nod, he picked up the plate with the slice and left the clear one with the lunch lady, walking over to the table where he previously sat before chewing a piece of the apple pie slice.

He couldn't help but groan with satisfaction at the taste, feeling like fireworks were going off in his tastebuds.

"So _goood_..." He let his voice trail off before practically inhaling the rest of the slice piece by piece until all that was left was a clear plate. He let out a satisfying exhale, lightly rubbing his stomach in a circle with an expression of pure bliss on his face.

Having enjoyed his last slice, Matthew got up and walked back to the counter where the lunch lady awaited, his sneakers squeaking unintentionally with every few steps. There she waited, watching Matthew walk towards the counter with a satisfied smile.

"Thank you for the free food, ma'am!" She couldn't help but let out a brief chuckle at his cheery tone.

"Yeah, well, it won't always be like that. The way you're eatin', I'm gonna have to start chargin' ya eventually." She remarked with a smirk, Matthew laughing nervously before nodding, "Speakin' of which, why _don't_ you have a Scroll, kid?"

Matthew felt a twinge of rage flicker within him, but he quickly quelled it. Not only was the lunch lady really nice, but she was also the one handling his food.

And one _never_ pisses off the person who handles their food.

"O-oh.." He cursed himself for not thinking of an excuse quick enough to avoid his stutter, "well, I'm from..outside the Kingdoms, and Scrolls aren't too common there. Plus, I don't have any money to buy one so..."

"Have ya ever been in Vale before?"

"The city or the continent?"

Matthew laughed nervously and put his hands up as a sign of surrender at the sight of the lunch lady narrowing her eyes, "Sorry, sorry..just slipped out."

On the bright side, he did find out something about himself; He was a smartass.

"To answer your question, I've only ever been in the city once, but I only went to a Dust shop." He explained. Memories of the time spent at the shop weren't held in his mind with much value, but the exact opposite was true for what followed.

 _Especially_ his conversation with... _it_. It's been a couple of days since his recent encounter with the mysterious being that used the voice of Truth from Fullmetal Alchemist as its own. The brief conversation he had with "it" had left him confused and with far more questions than answers, the cluelessness leaving a bad taste in his mouth.

Though, he did at least remember two things, although he wasn't sure if one would help him. Truthfully, one wasn't even a regained memory, but rather words that stuck in his mind from the encounter.

What he considered to be the more important addition, was "it's" remark that he'd fulfilled some sort of requirement, or hit some sort of checkpoint, while suggesting that such an achievement was the reason he was able to meet with "it".

The thought that he might encounter "it" again sent a shiver mixed with anticipation and fear down his spine. He was driven to reobtain his memories and knew that "it" was most likely the key to fulfilling his goal...but at the same time, something about "it" felt.. _off_. And the use of Truth's voice only added to chills sent down Matthew's spine.

The other memory was _far_ more vast, and definitely more enjoyable--the entirety, or at least, the entirety of what he could recall, of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood. The feeling of having a mini, incomplete film in his mind was pleasant to say the least, though he couldn't help but feel depressed as his memories stopped at a certain point in a scene, Matthew being forced to jump forward in the story to the next part he remembered.

Though, at the same time...there was something serene and pleasing about it. Finally remembering something from his own world that was..nice, to put it simply. Something that didn't have him with watering eyes that dared to overflow with tears from pain and sadness.

It wasn't particularly exciting, per se, but it left him feeling warm inside.

And that was a feeling he _absolutely_ appreciated.

"Kid!" The lunch lady's voice snapped him back to reality, as she wore a somewhat worried look on her face for a brief moment after the Earthling blinked a few time, a reassured smile gracing her face afterwards, "You alright? Ya zoned out for a bit.."

Had he? He couldn't stop the blood from rushing to his cheeks as he realized time _didn't_ stop whenever he was in deep thought.

"O-oh! Y-yeah, I'm fine..!" He reassured with a nervous smile, said expression replaced by a look of confusion as he heard her giggle lightly, "What..?"

"You get flustered real easy, ya know that?" She asked while still laughing lightly, Matthew simply sighing as his head drooped. Her laughter eventually quieted down, "Anywho, in that case, why don't ya just go today?"

"I'd love too, but I still don't have any money." He explained as he stuck his hands into his pockets.

 _'Plus, I doubt I'd be allowed to leave the campus on my own..'_ He opted to leave that piece of reasoning out, keeping it within his mind as the lunch lady hummed a pondering tune.

"I see...well, I still think you should go out into the city. From what I hear, you've got amnesia, am I right?" Matthew nodded calmly, though his expression just a tad sadder, "In that case, I think you should have some of the students here take you around the city. Bein' all cooped up in this school all the time won't help, after all."

The idea gave him a glimmer of hope that he'd be able to venture into Vale. Though it was a temporary shine, his hope dimming as he remembered Team STRQ was out on a mission.

"Yeah..that sounds nice, but I don't know any team that coul--" He stopped himself before going silent for a moment, a smile creeping into his face, his light shining brighter, "..on second thought..I think I might know one..."

With an energetic tap on the counter with both hands, Matthew left the cafeteria with hopes held high and shining like the sun.

Why, you may ask?

A certain redhead had come to mind..

 ** _-The End_**

* * *

 _A/N: Aha! At last, I've returned with another chapter! And it's longer too! (Don't you dare) I admittedly thought I'd only get to maybe 5k by the time the chapter was done; but low and behold, I managed to pump out a chapter with 8k words!_

 _And I'm not gonna lie-- I'm feelin' pretty proud of myself for that._

 _As for the story I mentioned in the beginning, it'll be a Seven Deadly Sins story and I'm considering writing a oneshot. What do you guys think?_

 _Ok, done! Now, to the comments!!_

 _Comment Responses:_

 _ **youngsavage:** Yeah, not a lot happened last chapter, unfortunately. Like I said--writing by the seat of my pants, more or less. At least, for the beginning part I am. I do have plans for the future._

 _As for Summer and good ol' Matt, I wouldn't say that they've had their conversation yet. That was more like a preview, if nothing else._

 _And lastly, plot's being set up!_

 _And with that, peace out!!!_


	13. Chapter 12

**FOOOOK, this chapter took a while to put out! I knew 7-8k was gonna take a while for a noob like me, but _damn_.**

 **Admittedly though, it took a while to put out for other reasons in addition, the two biggest ones being being school and oneshots.**

 **School's pretty self-explanatory: exams, homework, the works.**

 **As for oneshots, I've been writing a few and hopefully they'll be put out soon. I'm not highly anticipating people to like them enough that they'd become full blown stories, but I'll write 'em out if they do.**

 **To be more specific, they are:**

 **A Nanatsu no Taizai/ BnHA crossover oneshot**

 **and**

 **A RWBY oneshot**

 **The combo on the first one may be off-putting for some people, but meh.**

 **With all that said, onward with the chapter!**

* * *

A mechanical hum filled the air as they all remained silent, with tension maintained almost solely by the scowl on her face as she watched the green trees pass by down below, the speed of the Bullhead making them seem almost like a blur.

And the whispers behind her back weren't doing anything to calm her down either.

"Should we say something...?"

"Nope. We're better off leaving her to calm down on her own."

"I dunno, man. I think I'm with Sum on this one. I feel like we should at least _try_ talking to her."

"Hey, don't blame me if she clocks you after you offer to help her."

"Keep whispering about me behind my back and I'm punching _all four_ of you." Raven snapped, her stern warning eliciting a small "eep" from Summer before the silence returned, bringing as much peace to Raven's mind as possible.

In other words, not much.

 _'Damn Ozpin...'_ She cursed the Headmaster with narrowed eyes that threatened to set the forest below ablaze with her anger-fueled gaze. Her hand clenched into a fist, hard enough that it began to shake for a moment before she relaxed it, though her bitter glare remained, an indignant feeling burning within them as she thought back to Ozpin's "proposition".

* * *

"A proposition, Professor?" Raven asked, her stomach turning a bit as she grew more tense, and even the slightest bit nervous. The Professor simply nodded calmly in response.

"Indeed. Once the mission is over, I would like to you to spend more time with young Matthew."

A silent curse rang through Raven's mind as she heard Ozpin's request, as a possibility that she'd hesitantly anticipated was coming to fruition. Willpower alone kept her from gritting her teeth in frustration, though it did little to extinguish the flickering flame of anger burning within her, deeply hidden behind a slightly surprised mask.

"I see.." She began, "may I ask why exactly I must be the one to do it, Professor?"

"Well, from what you have told me, you seem to be the most distant from young Matthew, compared to the rest of your teammates. This lack of communication between you two could potentially inhibit the training process, considering that you yourself may end up training him in the future, depending on how much of his memory he's regained up until such a point." Ozpin clasped his hands together, gently placing them on the table, "Therefore, in order to prevent such a restraint, I would like you to spend more time with him, preferably communicating with him, if possible."

She held back a scowl at the chuckle he'd had, red eyes just barely narrowing as she processed Ozpin's "proposition".

She supposed it had its ups and downs. Watching him up close more often could work in her favor, as, assuming her suspicions turned out to be true, she could put him down as soon as they were confirmed. Then, a nuisance which had been gnawing at the back of her mind would go away. Simple as that.

Yet, at the same time, that wasn't the case.

Despite such a potential outcome being something that could completely erase the knots in her mind, that was all it was: Hypothetical. There was no guarantee that her suspicions were true, though her adamant belief in them said otherwise.

Plus, whether or not her suspicions were confirmed, it didn't change the fact that she would have to spend time with the enigma clouding her mind in order to find out.

Exactly what she was hoping _wouldn't_ happen.

"..." Raven hesitated to answer at first, soon slightly biting her lip at her hesitation, "..Understood, Professor."

"Are you certain?" Ozpin asked, "As I said, this is only a proposition. You are free to refuse, if you'd like."

The female Branwen sat in silence for a few more moments, her thoughts going back and forth on the matter, though the internal conflict only just barely showed itself on her face with a flinch as her eyebrows briefly furrowed before relaxing.

A few seconds passed before Raven finally made up her mind.

Her silent nod was all the Headmaster needed.

"..Raven?"

Her eyes gained a confused look as the Professor addressed her by her first name.

"Raven.."

"...Ra--"

* * *

"--ven!!"

A female voice, one which Raven automatically recognized to be Summer's, snapped her out of her flashback, the silver eyed leader having placed a hand on Raven's shoulder.

"..What..?"

"You zoned out for a while there...Qrow may or may not have said something about you 'burning down the forest with heat vision'.." Summer admitted with a light laugh, Raven, oddly enough, smiling.

It was nice to have stress relief nearby, she thought.

"I see.." Raven muttered, wanting to brush the flashback off to the back of her mind with a light shake of her head, "..how much time do we have until we arrive at the village?"

"Actually we're almost there. About..." Summer carefully leaned outward, looking to the right for a second before returning to where she'd been before, "10 minutes away...ish?"

Raven's eyes widened as a surprised expression instantly appeared on the rest of her features. Had she really been dozing off for that long? It rarely ever happened outside of times where she'd been either reading, training, or sitting in Professor Port's class, the last being the only one where it was due to boredom.

 _'All because of him..'_ An image of him came to her mind as she thought of the amnesiac with a grimace. Messy black hair with gray strands framing dark brown eyes, slightly tanned skin, wearing a white hoodie with rolled-up black sleeves, gray pants, and black high top shoes.

Truthfully, he didn't look like anyone special, at least not to her. He seemed like an everyday civilian, overlooking his messy black hair, which seemed like it had never come into the slightest contact with a comb.

All things considered, if not for the circumstances through which he'd appeared in her life, along with the his current state of mind, Raven considered him a presence that was, overall, very easy to forget.

But _no_ , of course it couldn't be that simple.

He just _had_ to be an amnesiac with enough negativity to almost flood a forest, previously almost void of any Grimm, with a wave of the dark creatures. And, in addition to that, he just _had_ to get enough of the Headmaster's attention to the point where he allowed him to remain at Beacon Academy, for reasons which still escaped her, considering that he was well aware that the boy was most likely, if not certainly, the cause of the Grimm infestation. Of course, for the sake of not forcing him to meet suddenly new people, it made sense that the Headmaster to have the team that rescued him train him.

And of course, it _had_ to be her team.

Sometimes, she could've sworn that, if there was a god, they were laughing at her.

"Tsssssssss.." Her eyebrow twitched angrily as she heard someone behind her deliberately making a sound intent of resembling the sound of something sizzling.

She didn't even have to _hear_ the voice. She knew _damn_ well who it was, a dark smirk eventually gracing her face as she thought of all the "misfortune" he'd come across.

And the best part? She could blame it _all_ on his Semblance.

That knowledge alone was enough to make her let out a sigh of satisfaction, as she watched the trees go by down below, the Earthling almost completely gone from her thoughts.

.. _Almost_...

* * *

"Thanks for doing this for me, Scarlet." Matthew began, as they walked down the hall to her team's dorm, the Earthling continuing with a laugh "Not gonna lie, I was kinda banking on you saying yes, so I really appreciate it."

Scarlet shrugged casually, "Eh, don't sweat it. Besides, a friend of Team STRQ's is a friend of mine!" She cheerfully declared with a fist to her heart.

 _'I'm still having a hard time believing that **she's** Pyrrha's mother..' _He mentally muttered while deadpanning on the inside, _'It feels so weird seeing someone who looks like Pyrrha talk so..casually. I guess the way Pyrrha talks probably came her father?'_

With a light shake of his head, Matthew brushed off the train of thought, deciding to focus back on the conversation at hand.

"Glad to hear it." He said before going silent, "..so...does your team know I'm coming?"

"Not in the slightest!"

Matthew couldn't help but sweatdrop, an action which he seemed to take a surprising amount of joy in doing. He wasn't sure why, but he felt that, now in a world he had thought to be fictional, committing the act here felt..complete, in some odd way.

His train of thought, for what must've felt like the tenth time, was interrupted by the sound of a beep, followed by that of a door swinging open.

"Agh! What the--?!" was all a female voice managed to get out before the sound of a chair hitting the floor was heard, "Ugh, my head..!" She groaned.

Matthew heard another voice sigh lightly amongst the roaring laughter coming from another voice, the latter being a female, "Scarlet, we've already talked about you swinging open the door like that. You almost broke it last time." A female voice said, the only reason that Matthew was able to tell the two apart being that he could still hear the other one seemingly bursting with laughter.

Matthew hadn't even looked inside yet, but was already considering turning around and dashing off into the distance.

"True, T-Money, you are indeed correct." Scarlet replied while mocking her voice, Matthew almost letting out a laugh upon hearing the nickname.

"Please stop calling me that."

"Not a chance. Besides, more importantly--"

Matthew felt Scarlet's hand grab his arm and drag him closer to her, allowing for her teammates to see him and the surprised expression on his face.

"We have ourselves a newcomer!" She cheerfully announced, Matthew slightly questioning her identity more and more as he saw her smile cheerfully. He couldn't help but let out a sigh before turning his attention to the rest of her team.

He heard one of them groan with a slight growl. It was the female who'd fallen off of what he now saw was a black chair with wheels on the bottom. She had ashy blue eyes, framed on a face with a fair complexion by black hair, which would have likely gone a bit past her shoulders if not for the fact that it was tied into a short ponytail with the red ribbon which should have been tied around her collar like every other female student, her dress shirt also having one button undone

She soon took notice of Matthew's gaze and gave him a look that sent a shiver down his spine, as if he could mentally hear her asking what he was looking at.

Feeling nervous, Matthew quickly redirected his gaze to the floor, though to some extent, he felt a bit frustrated. A part of him wanted to introduce himself...but something else was telling him not to. It told him to keep his mouth shut and avoid eye contact, to hope that they'd forget he was even there, for whatever reason, out of some delusional sense of desperation.

"Raine, stop glaring. You're making him feel nervous." Matthew snapped out of it as he heard the female voice who'd talked to Scarlet, the one known as T-Money, say.

"Oh, I'm _sorry_. Forgive me for being a little ticked that our team leader's SCARED THE SHIT OUT OF ME FOR THE _5TH GODDAMN TIME!!!_ " Raine shouted, the girl behind T-Money snorting slightly, causing Raine's glare to quickly snap towards her, "SHUT IT, LAUREL!!"

Matthew was left mentally questioning his decision to come with Scarlet, sweatdropping slightly at what could only be described as the most dysfunctional group he'd ever seen.

Granted, such a thought may not have meant much from an alien with amnesia, but it was impossible _not_ to see anyways.

A sigh escaped T-Money's lips as her shoulders as she briefly massaged her temple before turning her attention to silent newcomer.

"I'm sorry for Raine's behavior. She's" T-Money paused for a moment, glancing at the girl in question before continuing, "a bit short tempered."

"The hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"That you're quick to snap at people." Scarlet replied casually in a smooth entrance into the conversation, "Now, how about we move on to some more level-headed introductions?"

"I'll go first, since I'm assuming that you've likely been mentally referring to me as T-Money up until now." The girl from befoe responded quickly, "My actual name is Teal Gerbera, and I'd prefer it if you please refrained from calling me 'T-Money'..I get enough headaches from her already..." Matthew couldn't help but gain a smile at the glimmer of normalcy amongst what seemed to be a chaotic relationship.

She had short teal hair and ironically soft steel eyes.

"..Okay, guess I'm next." The girl behind Teal noted casually with a matching shrug, "Nice to meet you, whatever your name is. I'm Laurel, as the ticking time bomb mentioned." Said bomb growled at her, though she payed it no mind, "Laurel Pardus."

It was then that Matthew unconsciously gained a surprised expression as a dirty blonde tail, matching her hair color which framed ashy green eyes, like that of a leopard, moved gently from behind her. Seemingly taking note of this expression, Laurel's eyes hardened a bit.

Realization dawned his features as he took note of a factor that he hadn't really considered since arriving on Remnant, oddly enough.

The Faunus.

With everything that'd happened recently, he didn't have much time to ponder on how he would react to seeing a person with animal parts in front of him once the time came. Now, seeing it up close, it was...surreal, to some extent.

"What is it?" Matthew flinched as a voice asked coldly. Surprisingly enough, it was Raine, who'd been shooting him a glare even more piercing than the one from before.

"O-oh, it's nothing...it's just..well, I've never seen a Faunus before..." Matthew held back the urge to gulp as the atmosphere from within the room grew tense, the dysfunctional family gone and replaced with two wolves baring their fangs in the protection of another, as he could even feel Teal slightly glaring at him.

" _What_?" Raine questioned venomously, Matthew resisting the urge to gulp as he could feel her ashy blue eyes mentally holding a blade to his throat.

"I-I mean, I probably have! B-but I..uh.." _'Dammit, why am I stutt--?!'_ A hand gently placed on his shoulder interrupted his train of thought.

"Girls, calm down. He isn't one of _those_ guys, I swear." Scarlet reassured them with her ever-present smile before turning to the nervous Earthling, "I'm willing to bet you most likely _have_ seen one, but you just don't remember it."

"You mind explaining, Scarlet?" Laurel asked, her tail .

"Yeah..truthfully, I guess I should've told you guys a lot sooner." Scarlet noted with a light laugh before lightly slapping Matthew on the back, making him stumble forward just a bit, "Matthew here, that's his name by the way, has amnesia."

"..Oh." was all that left Laurel's and Teal's mouths, though Raine still pursued the route of dead silence for a few more seconds before clicking her tongue.

"If that was it, then you should've said that from the beginning, _miss Leader_." Her voice oozed with sarcasm as she called Scarlet by a mock title, though the redhead still had a smile on her face.

"I would've, but you screamed, Laurel laughed, I said we had a newcomer, you yelled _even mo_ \--"

"OKAY, I GET IT!!"

Scarlet simply giggled at her teammates angry outburst, though Matthew couldn't help but fidget nervously, doing his best to surpress the urge by sticking his hands in his pockets, though he still lightly tapped the tip of his foot a few times on the ground.

A growl escaped Raine's lips before she continued, "So, what exactly are _we_ supposed to do?"

" _We_ " Scarlet emphasized, "are going out to Vale so we can go get him a Scroll."

Looks of confusion crossed Teal's and Laurel's faces as their attention turned to the Earthling, who admittedly jumped a little on the inside once he realized their gazed were on him.

"Why didn't they get one for you sooner?"

He opened his mouth to answer Teal, but found none and kept silent, wondering the exact same question.

Why _hadn't_ they gotten him a Scroll?

It couldn't have been privacy reasons in relation to Team STRQ, since, aside from Raven at least, they didn't seem like the type to object for that sort of reason. Summer likely would have been _ecstatic_ at the opportunity to show Matthew around Vale and get him his own Scroll, and Taiyang would have been been just as cool with the idea.

Meanwhile, Matthew had assumed that Qrow would likely have just cracked a few jokes about searching for porn on the internet, but not really caring too much overall.

But with that out of the picture, what could it have been?

Ozpin?

 _'He's the only one who knows I'm not from Remnant. Maybe he doesn't fully trust me..? It'd make sense, someone as old as he is having some bad experiences with trusting people...'_ He thought, but winced internally in doubt, _'but that doesn't--'_

"Matthew?"

Laurel's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, the amnesiac blinking rapidly with a quick shake of his head as he gained his bearings.

"Wha?" was all he could say at that moment, the blonde Faunus having already gotten up from her spot on the bed, but not moved away from it, and already having changed her clothes. She wore a pale green t-shirt with the words **_Ballroom Hysteria_** placed across the front in thick black, designed to look like paint splatters, along with blue jeans and dark red sneakers. Additionally, she wore a wristband on her left hand with some sort of emblem on it in white, though the lighting of the room kept Matthew from being able to tell what exactly it was.

He also noted that she was the _only_ one there, aside from him.

 _'I zoned out long enough for them to change, **and** leave, without me noticing!?' _He exclaimed mentally, Laurel raising a brow as she watched him lightly bang his head against the doorframe.

"..What're you doing?"

"Taking a mental note." He answered simply.

 _'I **really** need to stop zoning out so often, or at least shorten the amount of time that I do!!'_

Laurel observed in deadpanned silence for a few more moments before speaking, "Well, we should get going. They said they'd wait for us by the Snakeway."

Silence filled the room as Matthew gained a surprised expression and confusion flooded his mind.

 _'The Snakeway?'_ He wondered.

Laurel noted the surprise on his face and her brows rose

"..Do you not know what a Snakeway is?"

Matthew paused, taking a moment to search what little memory he had of the web series for what a "Snakeway" was. A few seconds passed in total silence before he finally admitted defeat with a shake of his head.

"It's a subway." Trains were the furthest thing from his mind, the memory at the forefront being that of an orange-and-blue-clad hero sprinting on a _very_ longpathway with a dragon-like design.

"Huh.." He began as clogs turned in his mind, "like..um..." His brows furrowed as he tried to remember the name of the story, though any time he thought he'd gotten it, its identity seemed to elude him to frustrating degrees.

A slightly concerned look crossed Laurel's face as she saw Matthew glaring at the floor, his thumb below his chin and a moderately bent finger atop his lips, likely wondering if he was trying to burn a hole through the floor.

Her mouth opened briefly, though closed after she opted not to speak and instead let out a brief sigh, before taking her tail and gently passing it through the openings on the waist of her pants where one would expect a belt to go.

The sound of Laurel lightly tugging her shirt down seemed to bring Matthew back to reality as his brown eyes widened with a few blinks.

Laurel looked at him for a few seconds, and he looked at her, slightly nervous, before he finally broke the silence.

"W-what..?"

"...You _really_ have a problem with dozing off."

"I--!" He began, but reluctantly admitted defeat with a drop of his shoulders, "..yeah..."

* * *

"Wonder what's taking them so long?" Scarlet wondered aloud, now wearing a black and red camouflage t-shirt, black jeans, and sneakers the color of her hair, which had been tied into a high ponytail.

A feeling akin to curiosity filled her mind as she waited with the rest of her teammates by a round, dark green sign that read "Snakeway" with a small black train shape above the word and a black arrow pointing to left.

"Who knows? Maybe the little shit fell asleep on his feet?" Scarlet frowned slightly at her partner's venomous tone. She wore a black leather jacket, a midnight blue shirt, matching jeans, and black boots with blue soles.

"Raine, c'mon, you don't have to be so harsh on him." She simply clicked her tongue at Scarlet's request, the refusal plenty present in both the action itself and her elsewhere-aimed glare. Scarlet couldn't help let out a light sigh, despite how familiar she already was with her partner's attitude.

"While I'm not exactly filled with the urge to tear him apart like she is," Raine gained a tick on her forehead at Teal's not-too-subtle jab at her, "I'm not feeling any trust towards him either."

"What? You too?" Scarlet whined with slightly wider eyes, "Come on guys, give him a chance! So what if he didn't make the best of first impressions?"

"I feel like you're undermining the fact that, according to him, he's never seen a Faunus before." Teal noted a bit coldly.

"And I feel like you're forgetting that he has _amnesia_. Maybe he actually used to live somewhere _full_ of Faunus, but just doesn't remember it."

"What, like Menagerie?" Raine reentered the conversation. Scarlet searched her mind for if her kind was even allowed on the landmass in the southeast of Remnant, though her thoughts came up blank.

"Mm...well, I wouldn't go that far. I'm not even sure if humans are allowed to live in Menagerie."

"We are." Teal cut in, "It's just that it depends on the person. Only humans with specific circumstances can even enter Menagerie, let alone live there." The bespectacled member of Team SRLT ignored her leader's "Oooh", opting to move on, "Anyways, there's still the possibility that you're _wrong and that he might be a racist."_

"But there's also the possibility that I'm _right_ and he's just a sweet guy who likes the Faunus and happened hit his head too hard at some point." Scarlet added with a cheeky grin.

"..Either way, I'm still not thrilled about this whole thing." Raine commented with narrowed eyes focused on the concrete floor. The bond they had not only as teammates, but also as partners, left Scarlet almost instantly knowing what she was thinking about.

"..You're worried about her..aren't you?"

Raine hesitated to answer at first before simply nodding, Scarlet letting out an exhale and crossing her arms.

"It's just..." Raine began, "..you know what they're like in the city..there's still a lot of them that'll give her a shitty time if they see it..."

Scarlet's heart ached a bit as she remembered the one time it'd slipped out. It was their first year at Beacon, and her team had decided to go and relax in the park.

Laurel had gotten tired of walking and sat down on a bench, but was too tired to remember not to lean too far back. The metal bench dealt her a slight electric shock, by no means anything harmful, but it was just enough to make her accidentally let her tail jolt a bit.

Unfortunately, a child nearby had absentmindedly pointed out the appendage as it twitched once beneath her shirt, and saying that she'd gotten different looks from before would be _far_ to kind an understatement.

It was as if they'd suddenly seen a girl turn into a hideous beast, with a nasty look in their eyes appearing, and friendly shops she'd visited prior to the incident suddenly denying her access, upon the policy that they "didn't serve animals".

Not many of them went undamaged however, courtesy of one _very livid_ Raine.

"Indeed, they will." Teal began before walking next to Raine and lightly placing a hand on her shoulder, "but that's what we're here for."

Raine's eyes widened for a moment, before briefly softening as she smiled, a rare sight witnessed solely by her teammates and her family. Though, after coming to know Raine through their years at Beacon, she'd come to learn that, to her partner, the two were also the other to her.

Nevertheless, teasing was unavoidable, shown by Scarlet's exaggerated gasp.

"My word! Is that a smile is see~?"

"Fuck off!"

* * *

"Ah, it's you guys!"

Summer turned her head to the side, a smile gracing her features as she saw a familiar face running toward her. It was a boy, who looked like he'd be around 7 or 8 years old, with spiky honey blond hair and light orange eyes, wearing a plain blue shirt and white shorts, along with a pair of black sandals.

"Mel!" She exclaimed happily, crouching down to the boy's height, "It's good to see you again. How's Miss Yulda doing?"

"Grandma's fine!" Mel exclaimed happily, though his eyes seemed to soon gain a sadder light in them, "Luckily for us, the Grimm haven't attacked our village...but the hunters who went to get food.."

 _'Mel...'_ Pain twinged in Summer's heart as she saw the water building in the boy's eyes, a hand automatically reaching over and lightly rubbing Mel's head, slightly disheveling his honey blond hair in the process.

"I'm sorry we were took so long..." Summer began, silver eyes dimming sadly before regaining their light with a determined glow, "but we're here now, and we'll get rid of the Grimm in the forest. I promise."

Mel nodded weakly and smiled with just as much strength, worried silver eyes watching as he turned and ran back to wherever he'd came from. Summer's gaze remained glued to him as far as her eyes could see before they eventually reached their limit as he went far enough. Air escaped her lips heavily as she stood back up.

She was worried. She knew she would be. From the moment they'd gotten the mission, she knew she would be. Her teammates knew it too, Taiyang and Qrow havig done their best to reassure her and make her feel better while Raven had simply walked ahead of them in silence with a scowl that was a bit darker than usual, but the reason why eluded the silver eyed Huntress in Training.

Another matter which worried her, as if the concern she'd held for Matthew, and now Mel and his village, wasn't enough to deal with before.

"Sum," She heard Taiyang softly call out to her just a few feet behind her, "you alright?"

"..yeah.." She lied, "..I'm alright. Let's get started.." She said firmly before walking forward.

While normally, she would have been all for exploring, not only had she already done that, but she also wasn't in the mood to do so, hence why she simply walked directly into the wooden cabin, out of one of many, with a light green flag atop the roof, the only additional design on the flag being the dark green leaf in the center.

She could hear the voices of several men discussing, though the details of their discussion eluded her since the voices were muffled on her end.

Lightly pushing open the door, she, along with the rest of her team, entered the cabin. Upon entering, the first detail that registered in Summer's mind was the people, or rather, the small amount of which.

Aside from Team STRQ, only 6 other people stood in the cabin, 4 men and 2 women, all gathered around a table, with most of their heads having turned to see who'd just walked in. Whatever was on the table, Summer couldn't tell due to the men standing around it, though glimpse of its legs led her to believe it was made of wood.

With their entrance into the cabin, whispers almost immediately flooded the enclosed space.

"So that's them, huh.."

"Beacon Academy's finest.."

"Not what I was expecting, but beggars can't be choosers.."

"I feel like the red eyed chick is trying to use heat vision. Is that just me?" A dull smack was heard, "Ow!"

"Zip it, jackass, they're here to help." The lack of any intent to whisper let Summer finally hear what one of them actually sounded like, the voice she heard sounding rather gruff.

"...So," One of them finally began, the men standing on the side of the table near Team STRQ spreading apart so that the Hunters in Training could see who was speaking, "I take it you're the team sent from Beacon to help us?"

It was an older man, with black hair and a beard, both graying, and dark green eyes, wearing a forest green hunter's jacket with a camouflage pattern, a black shirt, black pants, and black boots.

"Yes, sir. My name is Summer."

"My name's Taiyang."

"Qrow."

"Raven."

Aside from the slight creekings of wood Summer heard as some of the men shifted their weight, the only noise present was the man's hum, which lasted for a few seconds before he eventually went silent.

"..Got it. Thanks for coming here. I'm Basil, Basil Curtis. These guys--" A forced cough interrupted him, one of the women, one with short dark orange hair, raising a brow at him before he sighed and apologized before continuing, " _and gals_ ," She rolled her eyes but he continued anyways, "in addition to myself, are the hunters in this village. We may not be able to contribute as much to the fight, but we'll do as much as we can to help."

Summer remained silent for a moment, uncertainty swimming in her mind. She didn't think they could handle the Grimm. The creatures of darkness weren't what they were trained to hunt, after all.

Worry built up more in her heart as she considered the danger they'd be in by taking part in the mission along side them, the emotion manifesting itself just slightly as she gently bit her lower lip with a lowered gaze.

"..I--"

"Well, who are we to turn down a helping hand?"

To Summer's surprise, Qrow had cut in before she could continue, a lazy smile on his face as he stuck his hands in his pockets, "We'll need all the help we can get, after all."

"Qro--"

"Agreed."

To even more of her surprise, _Raven_ , of all people, was the one who cut in next, "Strength in numbers will give us an advantage, even if not much of one."

"Oh? You're _agreeing_ with me this time? Pretty unexpected, sis~." Qrow teased, his older sister, even if by only a few minutes, glaring at him to the side for a few moments before averting her gaze and scoffing.

 _'Will those two ever get along like normal siblings..?'_ Summer mentally asked with a sweatdrop as Qrow chuckled while she could have _sworn_ she could hear Raven's blood pressure rising.

"Thank you." Taiyang finally spoke up, "We'd be honored to have you fight with us."

"Are you kidding? _We_ should be the ones voicing our gratitude," A new voice commented, the same woman with dark orange hair who'd faked a cough. She wore a black t-shirt and dark green fatigues when it came to her pants and boots, along with a pair of fingerless green gloves, "especially considering the increase this morning."

The detail caught Summer's, as well as the rest of her team's, attention almost instantly, silver eyes widening slight with a wary glint.

"..Increase?" She asked with furrowed brows, a fearful feeling building up in her gut. The orange haired woman gained a slightly confused look.

"Yeah..the Grimm population in the Forest of Life shot up yesterday, in the evening...didn't you guys know that already..?" Summer's stomach turned just a bit at the hint of worry she could detect in the woman's voice.

She nearly opened her mouth to simply reply that they didn't, but had a feeling that simple denial with a worried look in her eye, which she had a feeling they'd noticed, would only make _them_ worry.

Which would only attract more Grimm.

"No.." She began and paused for a moment before her lips pursued into a straight line, the glint of worry in her eyes quickly turning into one of determination with a blink, "but, if that's the case, then that's all the more reason for us to help."

Silence hung in the air for a moment before a chuckle came from Basil, closed lips formed into a smile as he shook his head, which bobbed a bit in the beginning due to the chuckle. Basil's head rose, dark green eyes focused directly on Summer.

"Guess the Huntsman academies aren't training wimps after all." His statement left Summer tilting her head to the side slightly, a confused feeling filling her brain as she watched him take a step away from the desk, "More importantly, coming up with an actual plan to take them on should be the top priority."

"Yes, it is." To Summer's surprise--no, to her bafflement-- Raven had spoken up again, "Attacking them during the night wouldn't be wise, since our vision would be reduced, and it would be foolish to expect you all to fight Grimm properly in such a condition."

Summer almost let her partner's name escape from her throat in a scold-like tone, but stopped herself upon seeing the calm nod Basil gave Raven.

"Indeed. But it'll be nightfall soon, so either you four spend the night, or we do this now." Basil said. Silence filled the cabin as Summer tried to make a decision within her mind.

On the one hand, waiting until the next day to clear the forest may not be the wisest choice, with the possibility that even more Grimm could appear in the forest, making their mission all the more difficult.

But on the other hand, just as Basil said, nightfall was approaching quickly, and rushing to make a plan would just have lead to failure, and who knows how many would die as a result.

The hunters?

Or maybe all of Burrow Village, if things got that bad?

"...we should wait until tomorrow." Summer finally broke the silence, "Rushing to make a plan won't do us any good. It's risky, considering that more Grimm might show up overnight, but it's still better than rushing in without thinking of a thorough plan."

Silence followed Summer's speech, not a single presence in the room objecting to her proposal. Said silence was then broken by a clap, courtesy of Basil.

"It's settled then." He stated, "In that case, you four should go rest in one of the guest cabins. And it doesn't seem like you weren't expecting to stay overnight, so I'm guessing none of you brought any clothes to change into." He didn't wait for any real confirmation, but simply briefly paused before continuing, "If that's the case, then you can feel free to ask anyone in the village where to get some."

"Got it." Taiyang said before thanking Basil, the dark green eyed man nodding with a slight smile before Team STRQ left the cabin, the scent of the fresh air flooding their sense of smell.

Silence followed the Hunters in Training before a languid exhale broke it.

"So," Qrow began, "guess we're spending the night. On the plus side, we don't have to do any homework, or at least we don't have to hear Port lecture on his 'adventures'." If not for her state of worry, though much lessened than before, Summer would've giggled at Qrow's air quotes.

But alas, one thought still swirled around in her mind.

 _'Hopefully Matthew's doing alright...'_

* * *

 _ **-The End**_

* * *

 _A/N: Sweet baby Jesus, this chapter took a while to write._

 _Thankfully, I think I might be getting better at writing, but I'm not really all that sure. I've been using Couer Al'Aran as a model when it comes to my writing for this story._

 _Don't get me wrong: I'm **nowhere** near that good of a writer. Cooer's one of my favorite authors on this website, and NTTF is still my second favorite RWBY fanfiction, period._

 _(First place is still Team AMBR: Finding Redemption.)_

 _But, anyways, please leave any thoughts on the chapter and/or the overall story in the reviews, and please tell me if I did anything wrong, just so I can make sure I don't goof up again._

 _Yeah, that's right, I just said "goof". Cause I'm awesome like that._

 _Also, p.s., while I never thought of any influences for Scarlet's team, Basil Curtis is based on Sig Curtis from FMA._

 _Onto the reviews!!!_

 _Review Responses_

 _ **youngsavage:** And this chapter started with Scarlet! And her team! As for the lunch lady, I had a bit of fun writing that scene too, also not entirely sure why. Maybe it was just her personality? Either way, I enjoyed it, and I'm glad you did too!_

 _ **Dinosaurchicken:** Surprised someone actually got that. Props to you._

 _See you all next chapter!!!_


	14. Chapter 13

"This is...definitely new."

The words escaped Matthew's lips without him even noticing, in the form of a mutter as he looked around, taking careful glances at every few buildings he and Laurel passed by as they walked.

The first time he'd gone to Vale, with Qrow to the Dust shop, he hadn't really focused too hard on his surroundings and simply let Qrow guide him as they walked through the streets of Vale.

One could say that, at the time, he was blind to the journey and only saw the goal, likely due to his mind still being focused on the dilemma of his amnesia.

But now?

It was like the journey was all he _could_ see. Buildings everywhere, from libraries, to cafés, markets, even a police station-- he was finally taking it all in, dark brown eyes observing them all with a curious glint.

 _I can't believe I didn't even notice all this!_ He noted as his eyes darted from building to building, dark brown orbs wide with awe.

" _Woah_..." The word escaped him as a breathless whisper before he gradually began to slow down and calm himself a bit, though he was left surprised at the sound of his breathing slowing. _Was I really breathing that fast? Guess I got more excited than I thought..._

"Are you sure you're alright?" He heard Laurel ask - and he could have sworn that, despite not seeing her expression, she'd risen a brow.

"Y-yeah," He couldn't help but stutter, "I'm fine..it's just...a lot to take in, that's all.." A brief pause remained between the two until Laurel exhaled.

"Good. I'd rather you _not_ faint on the street, especially not when we're almost at the meeting point."

A tick threatened to appear on his forehead as he gained a blush light enough to the point where one might've considered it unnoticeable. He would've retorted with something if anything had come to mind fast enough, but his reasoning beat such thoughts to the punch, as his blush brightened ever so slightly while he remembered his previous state of awe.

And so, pink-cheeked silence was his response.

Busy trying to keep his mouth shut, Matthew let out a tired mental sigh, letting his head droop slightly as he did so. A small part of him from within felt like punching himself for his newly discovered lack of social skills. At the same time, the thought of said flaw just led to him asking questions.

Why didn't he go silent the same way with Team STRQ? Or with Ozpin? Was it because he'd already known who they were? Only in a general sense, of course, but still.

 _Damn amnesia.._ He silently cursed.

But if that wasn't the case, then what? Another memory surfacing without him noticing in the form of a shift in behavior?

He couldn't help but shudder in silence at the thought with a deadpanned expression, hoping that his social skills weren't that bad back on Earth.

"Took you guys long enough!"

A familiar voice brought him out of his thoughts, the amnesiac spotting the rest of Team SRLT around a meter away.

Scarlet, who was the one who'd called out and had begun to wave at them, wore a black and red camoauge t-shirt, black jeans, and sneakers the color of her hair, which had been tied into a high ponytail.

Raine, who was the only one not looking at him, glaring intensely at the pavement, wore a black leather jacket, a midnight blue shirt, matching jeans, and black boots with blue soles.

Lastly, Teal, who watched Matthew and Laurel approach in silence, wore a light blue and white flannel shirt with rolled up sleeves, blue jeans, and black shoes.

If it weren't for the fact that he was still admirably a bit dazed from the experience of essentially being starstruck by random buildings, he'd likely have taken some sort of mental note on their attire, though such thoughts eluded him.

"Sorry 'bout that," Laurel began with a light exhale before pointing a thumb at the amnesiac as she continued, "But _he_ wouldn't quit dazing off to admire the _local architecture_."

One black brow twitched unconsciously as he registered her sarcastic jab towards him. Was this what it felt like to be pissed off? Or perhaps that was too strong a word..words?...to describe the feeling. Maybe just agitated? Annoyed?

Either way, regardless of what the emotion was exactly, he still shot her a weak glare, though she didn't notice his bitter gaze.

"Well, what's important is that we're all here!" He couldn't help but smile a bit at Scarlet's cheerfulness. Part of him was willing to bet a room's aura would light up with her presence alone.

The other was chuckling a bit at the thought of having to remind itself that he'd meant aura in the figurative sense, not literally.

With that said, the five of them made their way down the sidewalk until eventually reaching a staircase with a sign next to it identical to the one Scarlet and the others were waiting by.

The closer they got to the underground subway floor as they went down the stairs, the louder the plethora of voices became, until they finally reached the last step before stepping onto the concrete floor of the underground floor.

Matthew couldn't help but look around in even more awe, doing his best to absorb as many details as possible in his memory. On the far end of each side lay different color tracks, separated only by the widespread concrete floor, atop which a plethora of people either waited, had left, or had arrived, the last two taking place on two sets of stairs, one of which Matthew and Team SRLT had just stepped off of, the four briskly making their way to an emptier area, Raine dragging Matthew by his hood so he could keep up.

The bustling crowd was admittedly a lot to take in, but the more he looked, the more obvious a certain detail became apparent to his eyes as he looked around a gaze that became a bit more analytical.

"Are there even any Faunus here..?" The words left his mouth without him even thinking, though all the sounds around him drowned out his voice, leading him to believe for a few moments that his question had gone unheard.

That is, until he heard another voice speak beside him, just as quiet. Or maybe louder, but just as hard to hear, due to the noise? He wasn't sure.

"It isn't safe.."

It was Laurel who'd spoken, and, despite having to deal with all the sounds around him, he couldn't help but sense _something_ from her words.

Frustration?

Anger?

Fear?

Sadness?

Or was it all of the above?

Regardless of which, he still couldn't help but furrow his brows slightly at Laurel's statement. What did she mean? How wasn't it safe? It was a subway, not a battlefield, so what danger was there?

His mental questions remained unanswered as a dull _Ding_ was heard throughout the subway, followed by a female voice, though it sounded close to completely robotic, addressing the "passengers", saying that a train was approaching on the blue track.

 _Blue, huh.._ He thought, glancing to the tracks and seeing they were in fact that very color. A few more minutes passed as they waited, with Matthew figuring there was nothing better to than to stare at the tracks, before the train finally arrived, any details on it being difficult to see at first due to the speed it came in at, though it was just as quick to slow down. The train was silver in color with black doors and forest green lights that glowed on the outline of each door. A cute beep emanated from the train twice before the doors began to open.

There were, of course, more details, such as certain white numbers on black plates near the doors, but Matthew didn't really pay attention to those. Or rather, he had no time to, as he was briskly shoved inside by the crowd the moment the doors opened wide enough for people to enter.

"Don't stand in the way, kid." He heard a grumpy, old, male voice grumble as he entered the train, along with Team SRLT and several other passengers. To Matthew's surprise, a somewhat hard tug on his hood led to him being seated next to Laurel, with Scarlet at his side and the remaining members at Laurel's.

 _Uh_ , which happened to be the first thing he both thought and said, aptly described his mental state.

"Sorry if I pulled too hard." He heard Scarlet apologize, confused brown eyes meeting apologetic bronze orbs, "It's just that someone probably would've stolen your seat, and you were..well.."

He quickly snapped out of it to finish for her with a light smirk, "Zoning out?" _As usual_ , he added mentally.

"Yeah, that." Scarlet let a light laugh escape her lips before exhaling in what Matthew assumed to be relief. He couldn't help but raise a brow in slight confusion at the satisfied look on her face and the warm smile that graced her features.

"..What's up with you?" He couldn't help but ask, but admittedly regretted the phrasing a bit. He regretted it even more once he saw her gain a slightly confused look.

"What do you mean?"

"Well..you seemed pretty happy just now, and I was just wondering why.." Silence came as Scarlet's eyes widened slightly before she snorted a laugh.

"Th- _that's_ what you meant?!" Matthew's cheeks reddened a bit as he cursed his old self, thinking his newly discovered lack of social skills was _his_ fault. Her laughter died down as moments passed, though a few short giggles left Matthew thinking the laughter would return. But alas, it didn't, "Ahh...ah, man, we _really_ need to work on those social skills of yours."

He agreed in silence with a slight nod, too embarrassed to actually voice agreement.

"..so? What made you happy then?" Scarlet seemed to relax in her seat, her shoulders loosening and a calm sigh escaping her lips.

"Well..I guess you could say that I'm just glad to see you're doing alright." She began, "I'm willing to bet that, at first, your condition..it must've hit you pretty hard, am I right?"

His slight, pained wince was all she needed to continue.

"I thought so. Trying to relate with this sort of situation is pretty much impossible for me, but...I can at least speculate this much, from what I'm assuming it must be like...it's probably..scary, isn't it..?"

He lowered his head and leaned forward in his seat, black bangs masking pained brown orbs as he recalled some of his memory, doing his best to not remember any specific details so that he wouldn't go through major pain.

At least, that's what he told himself was why he did so.

In reality, he knew that such wasn't how it worked. That old memories didn't induce the pain. At least, not to the extent of new ones.

To put it simply, he was afraid.

But regardless of why he tried recollecting memories as vaguely as possible, he still did. And so, general, but impactful details came to mind.

The rubble.

The flames.

The smoke.

The _very_ loud siren.

The screams.

And--

" _Yeah_.." He forced it out in a pained tone before he could recall any further, eyes still looking down at the metal floor of the train, feeling a bit surprised that vague memories alone left him choking up slightly. Truthfully, he wasn't sure what exactly he was referring to when he agreed with her.

Was it the fear of not knowing his identity?

Or was it the fear of eventually discovering it, out of hesitation to know his what true self was like amidst the chaos?

Either way, he'd still agreed, and silence seemed to fill the space between the two of them, despite the sound of the train's movements on the track, along with a few scattered conversations within the train, being plenty audible.

"..what's your point?" Mixed feelings rumbled gently within him as he broke the silence. Bottled up frustration managed to find its way into his voice, though it was accompanied by an apologetic look in his eyes. He knew that it wasn't her fault, that he was the one who chose to try and remember, but he couldn't help but curse himself at the sound of anger bubbling slightly within voice, knowing full well that Scarlet didn't deserve any of it.

More silence followed Matthew's question, nervousness and some shame building inside him as he grew worried about how she'd respond. Was she angry? Vexed? Upset? Disappointed?

Maybe he was overthinking things. Maybe she wasn't upset. Maybe she understood how he felt.

 _Or maybe not_ , he thought in the back of his mind. No, it was more like he couldn't help _but_ think it.

However, in a single moment, any tenseness within him was suddenly drained as he felt something warm gently being gently placed on the back of his head. It took only a second for him to figure out that it was a hand, fingers together except for the thumb, as it went from being gently placed on the top part of the back of his head, to gently sliding down to were his hair stopped on his neck, then returning to where it started and repeating the process.

It took Matthew a bit longer to finally let a thought come to mind as he finished processing that a hand was caressing his head.

Or rather, _someone_ was.

 _...Scarlet?_ He didn't believe it with certainty as the name came to his mind, though he had a feeling it was her. And knowing that, he felt he had to speak up.

"I..." He tried to force some semblance of an apology out of his mouth, but the letter was all that left his lips before he fell silent. Though, to his surprise, gentle shushing following his failed attempt.

"It's okay..." Scarlet began, her voice just as tender as her touch, "You don't need to say anything...I get that you're upset..that you're frustrated..that you feel lost and confused..and you have every right to be."

If he hadn't been busy pondering his emotions and her words, Matthew would probably have made some mental remark about her Semblance being mind reading.

She was right. On the nail with every word, she somehow knew exactly how he'd felt, the unexpected accuracy leaving Matthew a bit more speechless, though the surprise didn't show on his face aside from his moderately widened eyes.

And slowly, but surely, a chuckle began to escape his lips.

"..you know.." He began, a smile now on his face as he rose his head to meet Scarlet's gaze, his dark brown eyes fixed on her bronze orbs, "Of all the places that I could've been given an emotional talking-to, I've gotta say, a loud-ass train wasn't the first thing that came to mind."

A look of slight surprise briefly crossed her face before her smile returned.

"Well, well, look who's proving my point~." Her comment earned a raised brow from Matthew, the amnesiac's confusion plain on his face, "..in class, Team STRQ told me a little bit about you..including a certain little moment of growth you had.."

 _What moment?_ , he thought, feeling only more confused. Was it when he'd made his resolve in the bathroom? He wasn't entirely sure, but he'd shrugged it off, figuring it wasn't important.

"You're surprisingly strong, you know that?"

"...I swear to god, you're only making me more confused." Matthew deadpanned, feeling _even more_ confused when Scarlet, of all the reactions she could have had, giggled. Though he shook it off in favor of continuing, "I'm not even sure I can remember how many times Taiyang's handed me my ass on a silver platter in training sessions. Aren't I quite the badass warrior?" He topped it off with an equally sarcastic eye roll.

"Oh, you're not wrong. Physically, you're pretty much fodder." One of his black eyebrows twitched in a brief flash on annoyance, "But a person's physicality isn't necessarily what makes them strong." Matthew's face returned to one of surprise, though with a hint of familiar confusion, "What _really_ makes someone strong..."

Matthew watched as Scarlet let a thumb gently hit the spot where her heart was.

"is in _here_. You can have all the muscles in the world, but if you don't have the will to keep fighting, then you pretty much don't stand much of a chance in a fight. And from what I can tell, considering what I've heard, willpower" Scarlet used the same hand she touched her heart with to point at Matthew, "seems to be something you've got plenty of."

"...Huh?" He hadn't even been sarcastic when he'd said it. Hell, he didn't even _mean_ to say it. It was like the built up confusion had slipped out of his mouth in one word, with complete disregard as to whether or not he'd actually _wanted_ to say it.

"Like I said, Matt, you're strong--probably stronger than you actually think you are." Scarlet leaned back in her seat, Matthew's posture rising a bit as his eyes followed her, "You may not have much skill at the moment, but, from what the Little Rose and her team told me, willpower seems to be something you've got in spades." She finished cheerfully with a light slap on his back.

A feeling of happiness admittedly grew within him at the idea that he had _some_ sort of strength, his eyes widening slightly as he remembered a certain detail:

In every training session, no matter how hard the beatdown, he'd gotten up.

No matter how many kicks or punches to the face Taiyang landed on him, though the blond seemed to show a preference towards the former, of the flying variety, he'd still gotten back up to keep going, with most of their sessions having ended due to reaching some sort of time limit, or some other intereuption.

If Matthew'd recalled correctly, it might have been 40 minutes? Or maybe 50? He wasn't entirely sure, having never really paid attention to how long they were at it each session.

 _Then again.._ A slight glimmer of disappointment reached his eyes, not bothering to continue his thought, already well aware of the point he would've tried to make to himself.

He was still weak.

By no means was he dumb enough to think Taiyang was even breaking a sweat in their sessions, even if he'd almost gotten lucky a few times with certain attacks, the blond either dodging them at the very last second, or taking advantage of Matthew's dazed bafflement at him having even been _able_ to pull off a certain move.

He had no clue where he stood in comparison to fighters back on Earth, assuming there were any.

But as far as Remnant, he had to agree with Scarlet. He _was_ fodder. Probably only about as strong as Roman's goons who'd gotten swiftly beaten by Ruby in the very first episode.

 _Ouch_. He felt his pride take a small blow at the acknowledgement. And as if that wasn't bad enough, although he couldn't remember the name of the series for the life of him, he found himself making a comparison between a certain former desert bandit and one exploding green bean alien.

The thought that he was the bandit in that scenario almost made him shed a tear and left the imaginary solid structure that was his pride with several spider web cracks, like it'd been hit with a giant hammer.

 _God, I suck._

The thought hit him hard, the slight darkening of the already dark brown in his eyes reflecting his state of mind. Though it was somewhat short-lived, as he quickly did his best to shake off the thought without physically doing so, not wanting to have the red-headed seated beside him experience any more worry than she may already have had.

His looped reminders to himself in that moment did their job, for the most part, pushing back thoughts of weakness and frustration to the deeper depths of his mind. Though constantly telling himself that he'd 'get better with time' left a somewhat bitter taste in his mouth. He knew that it was true, and that patience was key, though that didn't mean he was satisfied with such a truth.

What was he doing wrong? It wasn't like he was slacking off. Quite the contrary. Taiyang never even had to remind him of his training schedule, the amnesiac already having been at it since before the rest of Team STRQ even woke up.

But he'd still remained weak, much like the laughing stock of a warrior that was Yamcha, if he was remembering his name correctly. What was he doing wrong?

What, was he not trying hard enou- ?...

 _Oh my god._

The realization hit him like a splash of ice cold water.

If he was weak, then what he had to do was simple - painfully, irritatingly simple: Try harder.

 _Train_ harder.

At least, for the time being, until he caught up to, or maybe even got better than, Taiyang.

Admittedly, he almost felt like punching himself for not realizing such a simple conclusion, unaware of what he must have been thinking before. Questions suddenly flooded his mind after he'd come to the conclusion, wondering just why exactly it took so long for him to come to figure it out.

Did he assume it would be easy? Even after he'd made his resolve?

Did he think that power would somehow come to him like magic?

That just because he was living in a world he'd thought to be fantasy, absolutely _all_ of its logic would apply to him?

 _...What..what was I thinking?_ Disbelief filled his mind upon the realization of his actions.

He'd been going easy on himself.

Without knowing it, he'd thought, by some bullshit, plot-convenienced magic, that he would shoot to Huntsmen-in-Training levels at incredibly fast rates.

He cursed such thoughts internally with an equally silent hiss.

But, on the bright side, at least now he knew better. Now he knew that the pace he was going at wasn't going to be enough to win against Taiyang.

In order to reach Taiyang's level at the pace he wanted, he'd need something more. He wouldn't just have to work harder...he would have to put himself through _hell_.

He felt something flicker to life inside him, the feeling leaving him with a sensation of excititement - no, _elation_. Enough so to leave a grin growing on the Earthling's face without him even realizing it.

A small chuckle escaped his lips before he straightened his posture, though it didn't last for long, as the amnesiac let his back fall against the leather seat with a sigh.

He'd felt like a weight he never knew he'd been wearing had been dropped from his shoulders, and it felt amazing.

"...And to answer your question, _that's_ part of why I was feeling happy back back then." Scarlet spoke up, Matthew's smile now reflecting hers, though her gaze was now directed towards the floor he'd been focused on previously, "If we were to use your situation as an example, it wouldn't be that hard to see someone give up on finding out who they really are. Not everyone's keen on remembering a life of battle, bad enough to have led to them losing almost all of their memory, after all. Most would choose to just..move on. To act like it never happened, out of a fear that they might get dragged back in. That they'd lose their grip on the peace they'd gotten a hold of and used to..."

Although he didn't voice it, Matthew, whose brows furrowed slightly, on some level, disagreed with Scarlet internally, though it was only with his own mentality in mind. He'd already made his resolve to remember his past, since the day he arrived at Beacon Academy. The thought of giving up and moving on hadn't so much as crossed his mind, though he was admittedly unaware as to if that was simply due to being too busy training or something else entirely.

"But you didn't."

Scarlet's seemingly sudden words broke him out of his 'zoned out' state, proof evident as he blinked a few times with a somewhat surprised look on his face.

"Or, well, I guess I should say you _haven't_." She corrected herself with a small laugh, "Instead of choosing the easy option and moving on, doing your best to leave the past behind, you're actually going _after_ it, knowing how tough your journey's likely going to be."

Again, Matthew felt a hint of disagreement with her, though not like before. Instead of directly opposing her point, this time, he'd simply felt a bit puzzled. Was going after his past really optional? He didn't think so.

To him, it was almost - no, it _was_ an obligation. Though admittedly due to more of a _feeling_ that it was, rather than any sense of logic or reasoning supporting such a thought.

"Though, that's only _part_ of it." Matthew couldn't help but slightly tilt his head to the side in confused curiosity at Scarlet's comment, "What really cheered me up was your personality."

"...Say what?"

"Yeah, that."

The amnesiac briefly opened his mouth to reply to her casual, smooth response, though words seemed to fail him as none left his throat, his mouth closing after a moment.

 _Every second I spend talking to her makes me believe less and less that she's Pyrrha's mother_ , He thought dryly. Out of the corner of his eye, he happened to notice Laurel seated silently beside him, her eyes fixed on her hands, as they rested clasped together on her lap. A hint of concern and curiosity entered Matthew's mind the more he looked at her, noticing what seemed to be a troubled look on her face.

 _..come to think of it..what'd she mean back there..?_ His mind wandered to her comment prior to the train doors opening and him being pushed in, his attention then moving to the one person he'd felt he could ask at the moment.

"..Hey." He spoke in a quieter voice, though a bit irritated at the lack of any response, ".. _Hey_." He tried being just a tad louder.

"Hm?" Scarlet's brows rose slightly.

"..There's barely any Faunus here...what's up with that?" He was a rather surprised to see Scarlet's eyes, for the first time, actually darken just a bit as she seemed to register his question, a light sigh leaving her as she closed her eyes briefly before opening them, a worried look glazed over the pools of bronze.

"I can't tell you right now."

"What?" He cursed silently at his slight, accidental rise in volume, "..why?" He asked, his tone lowered to its previous state, and a bit incredulous.

"Again, can't tell you. The most I can say for now is...well, look around, and think about what you _don't_ see." With that, Scarlet went silent, leaving Matthew - who'd simply sighed heavily and leaned back in his seat - to his thoughts.

After a brief pause, dark brown eyes proceeded to glaze over the inside of the train car, annoyance building up bit by bit as he noted some details repeatedly.

Silvery walls, black frames on the windows, and seemingly only humans were present.

The same three details refreshed themselves in his mind as he looked around again and again, one brown eye twitching slightly at the cycle.

He couldn't help but click in his tongue in frustration as he looked around one last time. What the hell was he supposed to be seeing? Or rather, _not_ seeing, as Scarlet said?

"Why should I be looking around anyway..?" He muttered under his breath with an attitude, "there oughta be cameras in here to--" He froze in realization, eyes widening slightly with an identical feeling before they travelled over to the top edges of the train car, a small 'Huh' of acknowledgement being the only verbal response he gave.

The sight wasn't really anything that frightened him, his lack of any real emotional response being plenty proof of such. At best, it was about as surprising to as finding out someone was a whole _year_ older than he'd thought they were.

And yet, there was a feeling Matthew couldn't seem to shake off. It was vague, creeping in the back of his mind, but he could still feel it in his relaxed state, especially since he'd begun to focus a bit more on it. Though there was no memory to support the feeling, he still felt some semblance of..anxiety. Of uncertainty. _Fear_.

 _...Am..am I..scared?_

Of course nobody had answered.

But at the same time, he couldn't help but feel his blood run a bit colder at the silence.

* * *

"Hey, sis! You ready?"

She heard her brother from outside the guest cabin her team had slept in, dull red eyes blinking calmly as she stepped towards the wooden door and pushed it open.

Ignoring the small creaks of its hinges, she stepped outside, already feeling the warm air as she turned her head, spotting Qrow leaning with his back against the walls of the cabin, arms crossed.

Raven's nose twitched a bit, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"..you smell different."

"Is that..supposed to be a..compliment, sis? If it is, then I'm..afraid I'll have to dec.. _decline_. I'm too scared they'll have the wrong effect and make me sick." While she would've loved nothing more than to either hit him or ignore him, she'd noticed the slight slurs in his speech, and unfortunately recognized the scent from their days as bandits, having frequently been around it when a raid had gone _especially_ successful.

"...have you been drinking?"

"...I may have had one or two." Qrow admitted, his expression contorting into one of disgust, "The stuff tasted _awful_ though. Dunno why people would put themselves through that sort of torture." While Raven was glad that her brother showed disgust towards alcohol - only because it meant it wouldn't impede his skill in combat, which gave her less to focus on -, she was admittedly a bit concerned about his state at the moment.

As much as they fought and mocked each other, they were still family.

A very dysfunctional family, but family nonetheless.

A sigh left Raven's lips as she felt tempted to massage the bridge of her nose, though she chose not to, "..And _why_ exactly were you drinking?"

"Well..while I was out on a moonlight stroll through the camp," He began in a somewhat dramatic tone, "I got invited to talk by a few hunters, and the location of said talk happened to be the local pub." Qrow's slur in speech had disappeared, she noticed. It seemed his hangover had more or less worn off, his Aura very much so speeding up the process.

Then again, she was sure his Semblance would take its course at some point.

"They...more or less spilled their thoughts on the mission.." Seeing his sister show no response, Qrow went on, "..they were scared, sis. Most of 'em talked about how worried they were that they'd die and leave their families behind. Some were more worried about survivor's guilt." With a small grunt, Qrow pushed himself off the cabin wall with a foot, "Either way, they've all got their fears and worries about it."

A somewhat awkward - also a bit tense - silence was left between the two siblings for a few moments, and Raven almost felt like sighing, as she could see a glint of anticipation in her brother's dull red eyes, though it almost remained fully clouded by doubt.

Though, no matter what look she got, she wouldn't change her answer.

"...are they still going to take part in the mission?" She ignored her brother's tensing at her words, as well as the glare he directed towards the grass. Qrow responded with only a nod.

"I see. In that case, there needn't be any worry then." Raven knew how callous she'd sounded, as well as the fact that her brother was most likely furious with her, even if he didn't vocally show it, and it wasn't as if she didn't understand why.

Aside from talent in combat and some similarities in their appearance, the two never truly had much in common, even when they were children. Raven had always been the truly dedicated one, willing to do anything for her tribe, without hesitation.

Always living by the Branwen tribe's primary philosophy: the strong live, and the weak die. Simple as that.

Qrow, however, had always been different.

He'd always been a bit more..lackadaisical, when it came to his actions as a member of the Branwen tribe. Taking part in their raids on small villages was something Qrow also took part in, as did all members of the tribe. But with her brother, there was always a sense of dolefulness that followed him during their raids. He, more often then not, tried to avoid killing - an act that got him scolded and punished multiple times by higher ups within the tribe, who disapproved of mercy.

After all, mercy meant witnesses. And one of the primary rules within the tribe was to leave none.

Though it wasn't as if the punishments really changed him. Being stubborn truly was a trait they'd shared, after all.

"..." Qrow said nothing as he unfolded his arms, sticking his hands in his pockets before walking forward. Raven couldn't help but keep her own eyes locked onto the grass as Qrow walked past her, the male Branwen notably making a slight curve as he'd approached her in order to distance himself a bit from his sibling.

She knew full well what he'd meant by the gesture, though she told herself she didn't care for it.

And she'd done the same when she saw the glint of anticipation in his eyes turn to disappointment, before she'd redirected her gaze below.

 _Dammit_ , she cursed internally, frustrated with the way her heart felt the slightest uncomfortable pinch, and how her mind had begun to feel a bit strained.

 _They're getting to me._

With a forced sigh, Raven turned and walked away from the cabin, the sound of her boots softly treading atop the grass doing little to fully erase the thought from her mind. All it did was distract her, though it was better than letting her mind wander deeper into the object - or rather, _objects_ \- of her frustration that was her team.

Specifically, the bond she'd reluctantly admitted was beginning to grow bit by bit between them, at an aggravatingly gradual pace.

"For once, I think I may wish that I was with him instead of them.." The amnesiac's face popped into her mind, and she was a bit thankful for the slightly bad taste it left in her mouth. Thinking of him meant she spent less time wondering about Team STRQ, and it was especially nice that she had damn near no positive thoughts on him.

Though they still brought a frown to her face, as she remembered her next assignment given to her by Ozpin, in relation to the boy:

Be near him at all times.

She'd managed to avoid thinking about it for a while, the thought almost slipping her mind completely before she'd remembered his sudden scream in the library while she'd read her 'educational material' in bed.

The dull pain she'd felt in her face once she woke up led Raven to believe she'd actually scowled the entire night, even as she slept.

 _Even when he isn't here, he causes me problems._ She refrained from scowling on account of the fact that she'd still felt slight pains in her face in doing so, though her eyes of muted crimson gained a more choleric gleam. _I swear, finding him in this forest was bad lu-_

She'd cut her own thoughts short and stopped dead in her tracks as something clicked in her mind, like a twig snapping in a forest of dead silence. Realization creeped upon her in the form of suspicion as she let the information sink in.

They'd found the boy in _this_ very forest, and the Grimm population just so happened to surged tremendously following his arrival, with Raven being convinced the surge was a _result_ of it.

And last night, one of the Hunters had mentioned something about an increase in the amount of Grimm prior to her team's arrival.

 _...No.._ She shook her head before forcing herself to continue walking, _I must be overthinking this...Yes..that's it._

"Raven!"

Summer's distant voice shook Raven out of her thoughts, the Branwen squinting a bit before managing to spot her partner waiting in her combat attire somewhat deep within the treeline surrounding the camp. She would have been lying if she said she wasn't the least bit surprised at how awfully well her partner's white cloak seemed to somehow mix within the lush green of the trees. Maybe something to do with sunlight bathing the colors in a warmer shade, but she didn't bother pondering on it.

She'd been doing that a lot, she noticed, though she didn't bother with that either.

"Come on! Tai's already at the rendevouz point, and Qrow's not too far ahead of us!" Raven's pace only sped up slightly as she approached the treeline, Summer's form becoming easier to see with the gradual decrease in distance.

Her thoughts still couldn't help but flicker to her suspicion once every few moments, even as her sights were focused on Summer, hoping that focusing on reaching her would distract her from such a thought.

And yet, each time the thought flickered back into her mind, it remained only in the form of a question.

 _Could there be someone else like him in this forest?_

* * *

 **The End**

* * *

 _A/N: Damn, this chapter took a while to write._

 _This chapter was mostly meant to be setup for the future, both when it comes to our hoodie boi Matt, and also Teams SRLT and STRQ, though mostly the latter out of the two._

 _I'll admit, the hardest time I had when writing this chapter was Matt's realization, since I'd thought at times that I was writing him in a way that made him seem TOO emotional. Hell, the first time I wrote the scene, he was just straight up pissed at himself instead of in disbelief._

 _Plus, chapters may take a while to come out since I'm also rewriting the earlier chapters while trying to pump out new ones. Not sure how that'll go, but I have the feeling that some chapters will be combined into one, others may just be extended, and some may not be changed all that much, though none will be in first person anymore._

 _Also, one last note before I move onto the reviews. While I was writing this chapter, whenever I hit some sort of mental roadblock, I typed this a few spaces below:_

 _When in doubt of your abilities, remember these words that may reach the heavens and bask the world in glory: **Thicc Thighs Save Lives**_

 _So yeah. It worked surprisingly well for me._

 _Now, with that out of the way, to the responses!!_

 _ **The DoomSlayer:** While I may not be using the football part, shit will get intense eventually. Hell, if all goes according to plan, shit may get heavy in the next chapter._

 _ **Guest:** Matt's weapon is something I've admittedly not thought much about, and he can't do squat up against Raven for now. Especially not when he gets floored in almost every training match against Taiyang._

 _And with that, peace out!_


	15. Chapter 14

**_A/N (because there will be one at both the beginning and end for this chapter, and maybe future ones): Honestly, I have to admit_** ** _I_** ** _don't think I'll keep on trying to rewrite the chapters. For now, at least._**

 ** _I feel like they get the general idea of the story across well enough, so they ought to do for now. Instead, I think I'd rather take a break at some point way later on in the story to focus on rewrites, but I'm curious as to what you guys think._**

 ** _Also, sorry for taking so long, but I admittedly suck at writing chapters over long periods of time. Be it due to getting tired, or suddenly wanting to read other fanfiction (and ending up binging them), I've got a bad habit of taking a while to write chapters (It took almost exactly 6 whole_** ** _fucking months until this chapter came out. Good god, my time management skills are garbage)._**

 ** _But maybe I'll get better at it? Hopefully. Especially considering that I'm actually starting to lay out a plan for the chapters (by that, I mean ones closer to the start. Honestly, I've already got both the final battle and the ending planned out)_**

 ** _Anywho, to the Comment Responses!_**

 ** _Yexius : Can't say what exactly will happen (obviously), but I can say that Matt doesn't go to Mountain Glenn...hehe_**

 ** _On with the story!_**

* * *

It hadn't taken long for Summer and Raven to arrive at the meeting place, though the leader of Team STRQ was admittedly a little worried about her partner, Raven having gone dead silent as they walked. She'd seemed to be focused on something else, her dull red eyes having a slightly glazed look to them.

Summer had asked her what she was thinking about once while they were on their way. All she'd gotten was 'It's nothing' in response.

Geez, why did she even try?..oh, right, because they're friends. Best friends, in fact!...ok, so what if such a statement may or may not have been self-proclaimed. She still believed it. And she would make it a reality if yet wasn't already, darn it!

..a-ahem...right...now wasn't the time to focus on that.

Such a thought was later enforced as Summer saw a familiar red cape in the distance, a small smile appearing on her face.

"Qrow!" She called out, the male Branwen turning around almost immediately after she'd spoken. She picked up the pace as she began to lightly jog, concern briefly flashing inside her as she failed to hear her partner do the same, before disappearing as she heard Raven's footsteps begin to match her own pace. Within less than a minute, they'd already gotten to where Qrow was, as well as Tai and the hunter's from the village.

"What took you so long?" asked Tai with a smile, arms casually crossed.

"I took a while to get ready. I'm sorry."

The three of them went silent, eyes glued to Raven in disbelief. Hell, even _Qrow_ was wide eyed, though not as much as Tai, and _especially_ not as much as Summer.

Raven didn't seem to understand the reactions though, a single black brow rising.

"What?" She asked.

"Did...did you just... _apologize_..?"

Summer mentally thanked Qrow for having asked the question himself.

"Yes, I did. And your point is?"

"You..you never apologize. For _anything_." If Summer hadn't known Raven better, she'd have called Tai a liar.

"..I highly doubt that." She said bluntly, arms crossing, "Besides, what have I ever done that would warrant an apology?"

"...Sis, are you forgetting the time you _got me electrocuted_?!" Qrow almost screamed.

"First of all, in my defense, you were an idiot...well, more of an idiot than you are now, anyways." Raven added, Qrow growling a bit before she cut him off, "And secondly, I wasn't actually the one who told you to 'Hit the lights'."

 _Wait...oh no._ Summer flinched in briefly realization.

"In fact, if I recall correctly, I actually said something along the lines of 'You're a jackass and I'm glad I brought popcorn'." Raven continued.

"Wha — you — !" Qrow cut himself off, Summer turning her head away from him a bit, "wait...but if you didn't tell me to hit the lights..then who did?" Her head turned further away, silver eyes glued to the lush green forest. Though she resisted he urge to squirm as she felt a gaze — maybe two — fall on her, "...Sum..?"

She turned back to face them and...

She giggled. It was a nervous giggle, slipping out before she could stop it and causing her to mentally sort-of curse herself. 'Gosh darn you, Summer!' was about as far as she was willing to go.

"...sorry..?" She said with a sheepish smile, confused — and maybe a little embarrassed — when Tai started to laugh a little. Raven simply rolled her eyes, but Summer could see the amusement present in the Branwen's smile.

But what was Qrow going to say..?

"..it's fine."

Huh?

"Huh?" She couldn't help but ask, especially upon hearing him say it with such a relaxed tone, and a casual smile. What was going on? Was he going to prank her later, like he did with Tai? God, she'd hoped not.

"Hm."

Her head spun to Raven even faster than before.

Had she just laughed?!

Genuinely?!

As in, not with the intent to laugh at pain of others? No, she must've just been hearing things. Maybe she was just clearing her throat. Yeah, that was it! Just had some fle..fleh...phleaghm?

No, _phlegm_! That was it. Just some phlegm in her throat. Yeah...that was totally it.

"Shut it." Qrow spat back at the sound of his sister's lau—

 _Cough!_ Summer mentally corrected, _...cough..right_. His cheeks seemed to be a bit more colored, though he turned too quickly for Summer to be certain, "Come on, let's get going." He said before jamming his hands into his pockets and grumbling as he walked.

Summer heard a snort — clearly female — and immediately connected it to Tai. It could only be Tai. _Only_ Tai.

Following Qrow, the four of them eventually made it to where the village hunters were waiting, all equipped with various weaponry, from bows, to swords, and various other kinds of blades. Summer was almost a bit thankful that they were _just_ bows and blades, and not hybrids of some sort. Otherwise, the weapon nut in her might've taken over without warning.

"Hey, Basil! The kids are here!" She heard a voice call out, pouting at their word choice. Why did they have to call them kids? Why not Hunters, or at least Hunters-in-Training? What was the point of drinking milk if this was all the respect others would give her?!

 _..I think Mom was right, maybe I really do have a teensy bit of anger issues.._ She couldn't help but sweatdrop at the realization of her reaction, a sigh escaping her lips, followed by a small shout of surprise at the sudden feel of a hand lightly tapping her back. She looked to her left and silently thanked Tai with a smile and a nod, the blond doing the same in return.

"Ah, there you are!" She heard Basil's voice somewhere to her right. Summer turned her head and her gaze met Basil's form not too far off, the man garbed essentially the same clothes as every other hunter there; a camouflage jacket and matching pants — both the same hue of lush green as the forest — and black boots. A few of the hunters also chose to wear gloves, ranging from dark green to black, but many simply opted not to do so, "Been waiting for you four to show up. Now we can finally start making a strategy."

Basil gestured for them to follow him with his hand, and that they did. The walk was rather brief, though such was a bit helpful in dealing with some of the stares Summer had felt she was getting. Unfortunately, it didn't help stop Summer from wondering why exactly they were making a strategy away from the other hunters.

Was there something he thought they shouldn't know? Something only Hunters-in-Training could handle? She'd hoped not.

They eventually reached a small space, most of the other Hunters standing just a few meters away, save for a few. To Summer's slight surprise, the orange haired woman from the night before was one of the hunters who'd been seemingly waiting for Basil and her team.

She also couldn't help but notice the black bow she'd held firmly in her hand, a matching color quiver on her back, filled with silver arrows.

"Alright," Basil's voice drew Summer's attention away from the woman, "now that we're all here, it's about time we lay out a more detailed plan. We've got the bare bones of one, but we needed you four in order to make it more fleshed out."

Raven nodded, "I'm assuming you know where exactly the Grimm are in the forest?"

"Yeah, we know where they are.." Summer couldn't help but note the hesitation in his voice, and she knew the rest of her team did too, "The exact precision hardly matters all that much, though." Summer's brows furrowed at the statement, lips pursed in a line.

"And why's that?" Qrow asked, "Pretty sure knowing where exactly the Grimm are is supposed to be part of the _goal_ here.."

"Truth is, we didn't even have to look for precise locations." Another hunter spoke up — a man with short black hair and eyes wearing glasses, several dark green knives holstered on his hip, "They've been showing really..odd behavior. They're not scattered like they usually are. They're moving like a wave, but..."

"But?" Taiyang asked.

"But they aren't attacking." The man said with a sigh, arms crossing, "They should've been able to sniff us out and kill us with ease, before you guys even got here. But ever since the night before you four arrived, it's like they've..lost interest in us."

Confusion filled Summer's mind as she processed the man's words, taking a moment to really understand what he'd said. She'd heard about it having happened in the past..but it felt surreal to actually experience it.

Grimm showing intelligence.

The idea alone left Summer with an uncomfortable feeling in her gut.

"And that's not all." The orange haired woman spoke up, "When we tried to have a team see what was going on, the Grimm started to show hostility when we were just metres away from them. Around 48, to be exact. Fortunately, dealing with some of them wasn't too hard. Even managed to kill around 5 myself." Summer didn't miss the slight prideful smile the woman gained.

"..Shit, Mer. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you _weren't_ pregnant." Summer's eyes became like saucers at the new voice's comment.

"You're _pregnant_?!" She exclaimed.

"Yeah, and?" The newly named 'Mer' asked, a brow raised slightly as she observed the shocked expressions of half of Team STRQ's members. While Taiyang had shared Summer's complete disbelief, the Huntress-in-Training couldn't help but feel a bit more surprised when she saw the Branwen twins with surprisingly calm expressions.

"Why are you guys not freaking out about this?!" She exclaimed.

"Uh..!" Qrow..stuttered? Since when did Qrow ever stutter? "Well, uh..I mean—"

"What my idiot brother is trying to say" Raven cut in, arms crossed, "is that they obviously wouldn't have let her come if it would hinder her in battle."

"But that isn't the issue here!" Summer exclaimed.

"She's right, you know."

Summer went silent as she heard Mer speak up once again, turning her head to the orange haired archer.

"I'm well aware of how incredibly dangerous this is for me and..well, you know.." She laughed lightly, placing a hand in her stomach, "I've been pregnant for about five days now..and I'd be lying if I said that I'm just as scared of Grimm as I usually am. Just thinking about them even getting just a little too close..getting close enough.." The brief, visible shiver she'd experienced was more than enough of an explanation of how she'd felt.

"..then why..?"

"Because if I don't fight..then that only makes it more likely that I'll never see them. That they'll never be able to see the world..and I can't let that happen." The response had left Summer surprised, and the certainty in Mer's voice had been enough to make Summer's eyes widen with the same emotion, "Then again, that _is_ why we're here. To fight for _everyone's_ survival. Not just ours." She finished with a smile.

"Hm." The man wearing glasses laughed lightly, "Look at you, sounding all heroic." His voice had a teasing tone to it, one that Mer responded to with a roll of her eyes and a light punch to his shoulder, playfully telling him to shut up.

"That aside," Basil reentered the conversation, "We think it would be best to split up into two teams, with two of you on each. That way, we can cover more ground, and it's safer than having 4 groups with one of you per group."

The plan sounded solid. Summer knew were all four of them were plenty capable Hunters-in-Training, each easily capable of taking out large amounts of Grimm by themselves. In fact, as far as teams went, they were the best in Beacon. And the white rose herself actually had a bit of a reputation as the second best student in Beacon, having only lost to Scarlet.

A reputation that she admittedly wore with an odd mixture of pride and shyness.

"That sounds pretty ballsy." Qrow commented, "You sure the hunters here are ready for this?"

Summer noted the slightly worried tone in his voice, but chose not to speak up about it. Though it still left her feeling just a bit off.

"Yes, I'm absolutely certain. They all know what they're about to face, but they also know what's at stake. I can personally confirm that they've made their resolve."

Summer couldn't help but worry just a little, in spite of Basil's words. She believed Basil — truly, she did. But in the back of her mind, she couldn't help but think that it've might been too much for the hunters. She remembered all too well how many Grimm had been attracted by Matthew, back then. It was, frankly, a miracle they'd managed to take out all of the Grimm while bringing Matthew back to the village.

Too bad more had come, for reasons neither she, nor the others, including the villagers, didn't know.

"..well, in that case, I'd say it's time we get started." Qrow spoke, Summer feeling his attention then shifting to her, "Sum?"

Her lips pursued a straight line for a moment. This mission was definitely extremely dangerous for the hunters, and the slight grain of pessimism within her being whispered in her mind that at least one casualty was likely, though she fiercely ignored it. If death really _was_ a possibility for them..

"..Okay."

Then she would just have to make sure nobody died.

* * *

"..Hey...so..uh.." One of the hunters began. Actually, truth be told, the hunter speaking wasn't even a grown man. He was just a boy - seemingly Summer's age, if not maybe a year younger, with short dark brown hair and gray eyes.

"What is it?" Summer asked.

"The Grimm..they're a lot of them up ahead..a-aren't there..?" Summer couldn't help but internally wince at the restrained terror she'd felt in his voice through the way it quivered.

It hadn't been long since their trek to where the Grimm were had begun, and both she and Raven had already noticed the uneasy looks on many of the Hunters' faces.

 _"You sure the hunters here are ready for this?"_ Qrow's words flashed in Summer's mind. He'd sounded..seriously concerned. It was a little unnerving, really — she hadn't ever heard him sound genuinely worried, and it only made said emotion grow just a smidge inside her gut briefly, before she shoved it into the deepest recesses of her mind and shook her head.

 _If I'm scared, then who else will there be to be brave?_

Raven didn't count in her mind. She gave off more of a 'This is nothing, I'm perfectly fine, and if you die to this, then you're a weakling' sort of vibe. That wasn't what they'd needed.

"..yeah..there are." Summer replied, "..what kind of weapon do you use?"

"Huh?" He seemed caught off guard, "What kind of..weapon?"

"Yeah. What kind?" She asked gently.

"I..have a sword," He lightly lifted the blade in his hand for evidence, "but I normally use a bow." The fact that he could in general was apparent to Summer, with the bow on his back and the quiver filled with arrows at his hip. Plus, his build seemed more like it'd been from archery than swordsmanship.

How good he was exactly, she had no idea, other than knowing for certain that he was nowhere near a Hunter's level.

"Got it..in that case, I suggest you find a place in the trees. Somewhere where you'll blend in easily enough with the leaves, and where you also have a good enough view to be able to use your bow with confidence. And try your best to stay calm." The reason why went unspoken between them, both well aware of the Grimm's ability to sniff out negative emotions with ease, "And.."

"..and?" He asked, the nervousness in his tone and on his face giving way just a bit. A gentle smile grew on Summer's face.

"Don't be afraid to call out for help."

"Oh, don't worry, I'm _definitely_ gonna be doing some of that." Summer held back the urge to giggle a bit, but she let her smile grow a tad more at the sight of it. It seemed like her plan had worked, judging by how he'd begun walking just a little taller, and trembling a bit less.

The details may have seemed minor, but there was improvement, and that was all she'd wanted.

 _Okay..I guess I should—_

At the sight of the ever familiar black fur not too far ahead, her instincts went on high alert.

Her arm quickly stuck out to the side, palm facing the boy and the other hunters behind her, the sound of several footsteps halting on the grassy terrain reaching her ears. She looked over to Raven, only to see the Branwen had stopped as well, a tense, but ready hand at her side, while the other sat calmly on the butt of her blade's handle.

Summer's hand calmly went for the weapon holstered at her back — a curved short-sword named Osiria — and she unsheathed it. The weapon had a handle colored a shade of red matching that of a rose, and both a hilt and blade the color of snow.

The ears of the one of the Grimm ahead flickered, a growl soon following the motion. It turned slowly, and so had the others near it in response, glowing red eyes suddenly focused on Summer, Raven, and all the hunters.

The wind blew softly through the trees, though the deep growls of the Grimm ahead destroyed any kind of calm it had a chance of creating.

Neither Summer nor Raven said anything. Not when they'd readied themselves to charge.

Not when the Grimm began to advance towards them.

And not they'd shot forward with their blades in-hand.

* * *

The sound of metal making hard contact with something rang loud, the sound hanging in the air for a brief moment.

"Ow! Son of a mother _fu_ —!"

"Raine! Language!"

"Kiss my ass, you four-eyed prick!"

"What do her glasses have to do with this?"

 _That's what your concern is?_ Matthew couldn't help but deadpan at Scarlet's question, while making sure he remained well behind her as he watched Raine and Teal yell at one another from a distance, the former taking a knee to massage her shin — which had accidentally made not-so-friendly contact with a stop sign she hadn't known was there while throwing a small fit.

The reason for said fit? Well...

"Raine, calm down.." He heard Laurel say, her tone a bit sad, "It's not like this is anything new..so just—"

"No, _fuck_ that!" She spat back angrily, "Those little shits have the nerve to put up those damned signs, treating y..." She hesitated. They were in public, after all. Though such a fact didn't mean her anger would fade whatsoever, "the Faunus, like they're animals!"

"Raine—"

"Oh, but I'll show 'em an animal alright — right after I take this _fucking abomination_ ," In a lighter situation, Matthew would've laughed when she pointed at the stop sign, but he held himself back, "and SHOVE IT RIGHT UP THEIR—"

" _Raine_."

Everyone went silent. The voice _sounded_ familiar — no, that wasn't right. He knew who it was. It just felt..off to hear her that way. Firm. Commanding. Powerful. And, honestly, a bit chilling.

 _Damn...Scarlet can be scary when she wants to be.._

"I get that you're angry." The missing warmth in Scarlet's voice returned a bit, "We _all_ are." Scarlet gestured to everyone else, "But exploding like this here won't solve anything. In fact, it'll just make things worse."

"..." Raine glared at the ground, hands tightly curled into shaking fists. And honestly, Matthew couldn't blame her.

He'd have been lying if he'd said he'd felt just as enraged, due to not only the fact that he was seemingly a _far_ calmer person than she was, but also because of a lack in overall experience with Faunus in general. He just wasn't as close to the issue as she was, nor was he as close to it as anyone else on Remnant, really.

Still, the sight of it had admittedly been almost revolting, to say the least.

From what he could remember, the RWBY series had never actually shown that much racism towards the Faunus through methods aside from people actually referring to them with racial slurs. And even _that_ hadn't been very widespread, nor too obvious.

It was, all things considered, surprisingly tame.

Which was why he was rather blown aback when he saw the surprisingly large amount of establishments, either bearing a "No Faunus Allowed" sign, or vandalized with paint on the walls or windows, one of the most frustratingly common messages being **'GO BACK TO YOUR JUNGLE'**.

On the slightly bright side, Matthew _did_ get an answer for if he was still capable of feeling rage, or if him losing his memories had somehow taken that away to some extent. The answer was yes — the former, that is.

Also, he'd gotten a sneak-peak at a Semblance for the first time since arriving on Remnant.

Said display had occurred by the time they'd passed by maybe the 16th establishment with a sign prohibiting Faunus entry. Raine's palms had begun to emit flickering lights, along with a frequent _crack_ and _pop_ sound.

Suddenly the comment about Raine being a walking bomb had made a lot more sense to him.

"Scarlet's right," Teal said, "Losing your cool won't do us any good here."

Raine clicked her tongue, her glare still steadily directed at the floor.

 _It won't do them any good here.._ Matthew pondered, ... _but maybe it will somewhere else?_

"What do you mean by that?"

Scarlet's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, and the Earthling was met with all four of Team SLRT's gazes. It was almost enough to make him jump back, but he managed to fight back most of the urge, to the point where the only fearful reaction he showed was a slight widening of his eyes.

"..did..I say that out loud?"

"Yeah, you did." Raine said, "Now, you gonna tell us what the fuck you meant, or not?"

 _Can she even say a full sentence without swearing?_

The thought was a curious one, but Matthew brushed it off, figuring that zoning out in front of someone who'd been essentially referred to as rather explosive may not have been the best idea.

"Well...I was just thinking..Beacon's probably got some robots you guys use for training right?"

 _I'm talking out of my ass, but it beats saying nothing!_

Really, he had no idea whether that was true or not, but with the technology they had, something told Matthew it wasn't too wrong of him to suspect that Beacon Academy had such things.

"They do, but students aren't allowed to use them after 10:45."

 _Son of a bitch, I was right!_ Teal's explanation had left him feeling a little better, and glad that he seemingly hadn't said something stupid, judging by the way that Raine had calmed down _just_ a smidge.

"Oh..in that case..how about the arena? Do they still let you guys spar there?"

"Yeah, 'til 11:00, I think.." Laurel answered.

"It's 9:03 now." Scarlet noted after taking a quick look at her scroll, "His idea doesn't sound too bad. Spars _can_ be good for letting off some steam. How 'bout it, girls? Get the scroll, then head back to Beacon for one or two rounds?"

"I mean...I guess it wouldn't be too bad.."

"I'd rather not." Teal said simply, "One shower is more than enough for me."

 _Understandable,_ Matthew reasoned. He could see the idea of two showers in one day being annoying to some people. _Still, Laurel's on board with it. What about Scarlet and Raine?_

"Well, I'm up for it!" Scarlet declared cheerfully, "Raine?"

The girl in question remained silent for a bit, arms crossed as she let her eyes close. An exhale escaped her lips a few moments later, though she fixed a glare on Matthew moments after it did.

"You got lucky." was all she said.

He wasn't sure if he should have felt confused, terrified, or satisfied.

"I'll take that as a yes!" Scarlet cheered, "Now, onward, to the electronics store!"

 _Thank god I managed to pull that off_ , Matthew let out a breath he didn't know he was holding as the girls began to walk ahead of him.

Something told him that the bits of Faunus discrimination he'd seen wasn't about to go away as they continued their journey.

He could only hope that he could help keep their spirits up.

* * *

"Raven, behi—!"

Her partner seemed to not even need the warning, quickly turning while drawing her sword in a fluid motion, a quick red arc slicing both through the air and clean through the Ursa's neck. The Grimm's head and neck slid off from its body, both evaporating into the same ash-like substance before its head even hit the ground.

Summer felt a small smile come to her lips for a very brief moment at the sight of her partner's ease when it came to handling the Grimm on her end. Though the moment passed just as fast as it'd came, silver eyes hardening at the sound of several familiar growls to her left.

Summer turned and saw multiple — around seven, she counted — Ursa watching her in the distance, red eyes glowing ominously, though they seemed to show her a greater amount of ferocity, for reasons she couldn't figure out. But, such wasn't the main question her mind as she readied herself, her weapon gripped tightly in her hands.

Rather, she'd been wondering about their behavior.

 _Why are so many of them together? What's going on?_ She wondered to herself. The thought had been bugging her since the private meeting between her team and Basil — and even more so since the battle began — and she couldn't figure out an exact reason for the way they were acting. Granted, it wasn't uncommon for Grimm to be found in groups.

But this...something didn't feel right here. It felt like there were too many for this to be ordinary.

...but, then again, she supposed that didn't really matter right now.

 _For now.._ Summer let her eyes gain a hardened look, the light in them fading out a bit, giving them a colder, metallic gleam, _just focus on getting rid of them._

In an instant, she was off.

Launching towards the enemy, her form a barely visible white blur, Summer immediately killed 5 of the Ursa with impossible-to-track cuts either through their throats, or their skulls, as she flew by. The Huntress-in-Training quickly fixed her form as she spun in the air, landing crouched and skidding a few feet back. Her blade was already gripped at her sides by the time she'd come to a stop, the last remaining Grimm taking a moment before turning around to glare, red orbs seemingly trying to burn a whole through her face.

All while ignoring the six ascending piles of black ash, which meshed together in the air briefly before disappearing entirely.

With a soft exhale, Summer's posture became more relaxed, and her eyes regained their normal cheery light. At this point, being like that wasn't necessary. One Ursa was barely even a problem, if any at all.

Though the Grimm didn't take too kindly to her gesture, as it charged at her with a roar.

Only to be decapitated with a somewhat casual swing of her blade.

Summer let out a sigh as she continued to walk forward, ignoring the disappearance of its ashy remains. If she was done this quickly, then how was the rest of her team fairing? They couldn't have been doing too badly. Though Summer was undoubtedly the best among them, they were still _plenty_ powerful themselves.

But that was to be expected of them, being Hunters-in-Training after all.

"Raven!" She called out as she saw her partner sheathe her weapon up ahead. The Branwen seemed not to notice Summer, or even hear her, for that matter. Instead, she maintained an angry glare at the grass a few feet away from her, "Hey, Raven!"

That seemed to get her attention.

Raven flinched before turning her head to Summer, wearing an expression that seemed to be a mix between surprise and frustration. If Summer hadn't known any better, she would've taken it personally. She knew her friend better than that.

Still, what was she upset about?

"What's wrong?" Raven's expression returned to a normal, leveled look.

"..It's nothing." Her partner left no room for her to respond, Raven beginning to walk away the moment after the words left her lips. Summer tried to call out for her to wait, but a deep, booming growl cut her off. Both

their heads swerved quickly to the direction where the sound came from, not seeing anything at first.

"What the..?" Summer didn't bother finishing.

It had taken a moment or two for Summer to finally spot.. _something_ , moving in the forest, its large black form — seemingly almost twice her size — flickering in and out of existence as it walked through the forest, the tree bark doing a frustratingly good job at making it hard for her to pinpoint where exactly it was. Darn it, why did dark brown almost look like black at a distance?!

Summer's eyes narrowed, brows furrowing in frustration as she tried to make out what exactly it was, until something else caught her eye. Her breath hitched the moment she saw it, a form of green seemingly hovering above the ground, bouncing lightly in unison with the black figure as it walked. It didn't take her long to put together what was likely happening.

She didn't know what that thing was, but it was carrying something.

Possibly some _one_.

The idea of the latter had already sent her in a sprint towards mysterious figure of darkness, ignoring her partner's calls as dashed forward. With Osiria gripped tightly in her hand, Summer put more strength in her legs, wind blowing past her faster as she accelerated greatly.

Mere moments had passed before Summer finally saw a path of dug up dirt stretching horizontally, the Huntress-in-Training quickly forcing herself to a stop once she reached it. Silver eyes quickly shot forward..but...

"...w..wh..."

She froze.

Her blood ran cold, her body stiffening and refusing to move at the sight of the hulking mass of darkness just 10 meters away from her. Its back muscles — along with the rest of it's body — were ridiculous in size and definition. And if Summer hadn't been busy questioning whether or not she was seeing things, she'd have claimed that the muscles on its back seemed to form some kind of evil face, with two smaller muscles forming a sinister pair of eyes, while the ones on the lower back worked together to form a nasty snarl.

It had taken Summer a moment to notice that she'd been seemingly hypnotized by just its back before she shook her head lightly and took in its full form. It wasn't any easier to digest mentally, she thought.

Looking at it at that moment, Summer was certain it was twice her size, with grossly visible veins due to its ridiculously large, defined muscles running all around its body. The only thing on it that didn't seem to be outrageously ripped was its slowly moving tail, like that of a bull.

Summer's heart almost stopped when its foosteps did.

An otherworldly growl came from whatever it had for a face — or at least she hoped it did. Its head was covered in black rags resembling a hood, though something seemed to be protruding from the sides of its head, slightly altering the shape of the hood at the sides.

Though Summer was honestly hoping she wouldn't find out for sure. She could've sworn she'd _felt_ the vibrations from the bellowing guttural noise it emitted.

She wasn't even sure if this _was_ a Grimm. Its pitch black figure was almost telling her in her face that it was, but something in her wanted to deny it. Not even Goliaths carried this sort of aura with them, as ironic as such a word may have been in such usage.

This sense of inevitable death, of unrelenting, cold rage that was almost _palpable_..it..it—

" _SUMMER_!"

Summer snapped somewhat out of her fear-drunken daze at the sound of a voice that was familiar, yet not. She felt something grab her cloak fiercely and pull her back into pitch black, before the lush green forests appeared before her once again, as she landed flat on her back, too dazed to fully process the light, brief vibration she felt beneath her. Not yet fully back in her right mind, Summer blinked a few times before realizing that she'd actually been sweating rather heavily, brows furrowing in confusion briefly.

What happened?

She remembered seeing something moving up ahead, and that something else had made her take action and go after it. And...

 _Oh_ , she thought with a shiver before slowly sitting up, one hand tightly clenching the cloth where her heart was, while the other dug its fingers into the dirt. She hated the fact that she was shivering. She hated that she almost felt like crying. She hated all of it, and so much more.

What would be the consequences? What if whatever that _thing_ was had already killed people? What if it was on its way to kill more? And what about the other shape she'd seen at a distance? Was that a person? Had she let someone get kidnapped? Had she let it take a poor soul's corpse as some sort of twisted trophy? Or was it—

" _Summer_." She once again snapped out of it as she felt a pair of hands grip her shoulders firmly before shaking them. Summer lifted her gaze and found it meeting that of her partner, Raven's normally dull red eyes, to Summer's small surprise, actually containing some worry, "Are you okay..?"

"I.." It was all she could force out, her voice trembling, before memories of _it_ made her go silent again. Shaky breaths left Summer for a few moments before she took in a deep breath, her racing heartbeat calming down just a smidge, "..I..I think so.."

"I see.." Raven sounded calm, but Summer couldn't help but notice a single bead of sweat on her forehead, as hard as it was to see behind her bangs, "You're lucky I got to you in time. Otherwise.." Raven's gaze, turning nervous, traveled up to something behind Summer. Brows furrowing in confusion at the sight of Raven's expression, Summer slowly turned her head, a morbid feeling creeping up her neck the closer she felt she got to what Raven saw.

Her eyes shot open the moment she saw it.

While the trees in front of them obstructed her vision a bit, her ability to see the damage was all the same. Beyond the trees in front of them, she saw an open field, built upon dirt and trees that had either been crushed, ripped apart, or simply torn from their roots and left there to lay.

She was damn certain that the monstrosity she saw earlier was the one who caused so much damage. But what in the world had it attacked with?! Maybe what it was holding wasn't a person, but a weapon? But in that case, then what kind? A blade? A club? Something else?

It took all her strength to ignore the possibility that it could have used someone's corpse as a weapon of such mass destruction.

But...what if it _hadn't_ used a weapon? What if that was just pure brute strength without the aid of any tool? The idea of such a possibility was terrifying to Summer. Not as much as the corpse-weapon - which she refused to even ponder about in the slightest - but definitely still enough to send chills down her spine.

"..I don't know what it was.." Summer finally managed to force the words out, her voice trembling just a bit. She began to feel her heart pump with decreasing speed and force, the blood pumping in her ears doing the same as she took slightly deeper breaths.

"Hopefully we won't ever need to find out.." She heard her partner say quietly. The Huntress in her wanted to disagree. It was their duty to protect others, to make sure people could rest safely, knowing that the Huntsman and Huntresses were doing there best to fight for them and keep them safe. And a lack of knowledge on a foe, especially on such a nightmarishly dangerous one, could prove fatal not only for the innocent civilians, but also for the Hunters trying to protect them.

..but at the same time...Summer couldn't help cut mentally chide herself as she gently nodded in response.

* * *

The sound of fingers gently tapping the table seemed to quietly fill the room — an action she only really partook when faced with boredom, or when musing over something.

It was, admittedly, a habit of hers she had yet to discard in all her years — one she normally would hold her self back from doing.

Memories of the past tended to be...troublesome.

...but today, or rather, this exact moment, was..different, with all her attention being focused on the item held in her bull-headed Grimm's hand.

 _..it seems I managed to reach it in time.._ She mused silently with her chin propped against her fist, red eyes flashing briefly with ominous amusement. A smile appeared on her face before she leisurely got up from her chair, calmly sending the Seer Grimm away with a slow flick of her wrist. Each relaxed step she took filled the room with an echo, until she finally reached outside her lair, greeted by the barren, rocky wasteland that was her domain, enormous purple crystals stabbing out of the ground. Both the land and the sky were painted a deep red, the only bright colors in sight being the bright red clouds that carried an ominous feeling of death, and the ever so familiar broken moon, hanging shattered in the sky.

The pool turning her into what she was now, along with living and mentally growing for centuries, had made it easier to stare at the sight for a bit, but.. _unsavory_ memories always made her stop gazing.

A cool exhale escaped Salem's lips, her breath briefly visible as a red mist before it vanished. She walked down the steps, deciding to head towards an area that had, to her own surprise years ago, become her favorite spot within her domain. The spot where some of her best creations had been made. Ones reserved only for more..significant tasks. There was no need to use their strength on ants that needed only weaker Grimm in order to be held back.

There was, however, a need for them from time to time.

Especially now, when new, surprisingly unfamiliar presences had arrived on the field.

 _..And now, it seems I'll finally see one of them._ She couldn't help but think about it again.

It had all begun that one day - that one peculiar day, in the Forest of Life. Something — no, some _one_ — had attracted Grimm to the forest formerly void of her creations. In mere moments, it was as if they'd all gone wild, even completely ignoring her own orders to halt, as they bolted to what must've seemed to them like something far better than a five star buffet.

And she couldn't blame them. After all, she sensed it too.

The negativity from that one spot..from that one person, so incredibly pungent that, for the first time in centuries, she actually felt genuine surprise after being caught off guard. She could practically taste the miasma, feeling each and every single emotion within what seemed like an ocean of darkness.

Gloom.

Anger.

Sadness.

Fear.

Confusion.

Pessimism.

Despair.

And _so_ much more..

Salem could've sworn she'd felt a tingle race up her spine as she felt the brief, yet gigantic flash of negative emotions. But, just as fast as it came, it vanished. And worse, it had seemed that, judging from what she saw through her Grimm, whoever it was had been rescued by, at bare minimum, four children, all armed and highly skilled, for what they were.

Ozpin's work, no doubt.

She'd almost felt like sending a hoard of Grimm barreling toward his academy, just to get at least a glimpse of whoever it was that was bearing such strong hatred — such pure _despair_. She snapped out of it the moment after the thought crossed her mind though, even going so far as to lightly chastise herself for almost losing her patience like that.

All those centuries of planning, and she could've wasted it all..

But who would've known that a _second_ anomaly would appear in that very same forest? Perhaps luck was on her side after all, she remembered musing after almost immediately having the Grimm already present search for it, while clarifying _not_ to kill it, while also sending in _more_ Grimm to keep any Huntsmen or Huntresses from finding it first. It left her a bit surprised really, how quick she was to react to the new presence's appearance. The second hadn't even let out much more negativity, but it seemed..lighter. It wasn't as strong as that of the first anomaly, though it still felt...foreign, somehow. Had the first mysterious person's negativity left her temporarily sensitive? And why had this second's felt so different?

Come to think of it, the first's had felt foreign to her as well, something she only realized upon further thought. Were they both from lands she had yet to discover on Remnant?

No, that couldn't have been possible. Not when already she'd gone to every Kingdom in Remnant all those centuries ago.

But if not from the Kingdoms, then where?

All were questions that only further fueled her resolve to get at least _one_ of them.

So much so, in fact, that she'd sent one of her stronger, older creations: the Tavros. It was a creation of hers which was around..half as old as the Grimm Dragon? She wasn't completely certain, having stopped counting after the first two centuries of the Dragon's existence. Regardless, she'd known it would get the job done, so she'd sent it to go and bring the second anomaly back to her.

"I'm almost a bit anxious." She admitted with a light huff, her lips curled upward. She stopped walking once she reached the edge of a cliff, overlooking a large pit, filled to the brim with a black ooze that reeked with the scent of ashes and oil mixed together, "It's been a while since I've even felt anything like this." She mused.

The sound of slow footstomps behind her caught her ear, Salem turning her head calmly until she was looking over her shoulder. Her eyes widened, her brows rose, and a smile appeared on her face as she saw the Tavros standing behind her at a distance, a person held in one of its arms. They hung loosely in its hold, head, arms, and legs drooping down with no resistance. The Tavros placed the figure down gently on the ground, back first, Salem finally taking in its, or rather, _his_ , appearance.

It was a human boy, seemingly in his late teens, with brown skin and short, dark hair. He wore some sort of green, unzipped jacket, the sleeves messily cut off at his elbows, and a dark grey shirt underneath. He also wore torn blue pants, and dark purple and white shoes that went just above his ankles. In addition, he wore a pair of black wristbands, along with a seemingly silver necklace with an apostrophe. Salem admittedly wasn't certain if it was indeed made of silver, the ornament so filthy that she'd actually thought it was rusting for a moment.

In fact, every part of the boy was covered in some form of dirt or soot, though at varying degrees depending on what part of his body. Though, things like the dirt weren't what made Salem's brows rise ever so slightly.

Rather, it was the dark red circlular stain on his shirt, the colored area clinging to his skin with a scent that Salem was ever so familiar with...and yet, _wasn't_. In fact, the more she let the scent of what was most likely his blood enter her nose, the less she recognized it as a familiar one. There was something..off, about it. More than anything, it sharply contrasted with the rather wine-like scent that all the others' blood gave off. Or, at least, that was what it smelled like to her.

But the boy's blood smelled.. _metallic_. Like iron, in particular.

 _Blood made from steel.._ The thought amused her for a moment before she brushed it off with a mental huff.

But still, everything she'd seen and sensed up until that point just left her wondering more and more — what exactly _was_ this child? And just how much was the other person like him?

 _What indeed..._ She thought as she watched him in silence, scarlet eyes fixed on his chest, which rose and descended gently with every breath he took. She figured it may have been safe to say that this was not, by any chance, the anomaly who appeared first, judging by how peaceful the boy looked.

But who knew? Perhaps she would be proven wrong.

She stared at him for a few more moments before finally speaking, "...Place him in one of the cells.." The Tavros followed her orders without hesitation, gently scooping up the boy in his arm and carrying him the same way he had before. Her gaze followed the bull-headed Grimm as it stomped away, though her eyes weren't focused on the beast.

If the world of Remnant was a body of water, then two rocks had just been thrown downwards, straight into the center.

 _I wonder, Ozpin_

, A smile grew on her lips as her predatory crimson eyes flashed with an ominous glow, _just how much this ripple will spread.._

* * *

 ** _The End_**

* * *

 **A/N: Ok. So, this chapter was surprisingly kinda frustrating to write, but damn am I glad I managed to do so!**

 **There** **are a few things here and there that I feel like I probably could've done better on, like how I described the Tavros while trying to show just how scared shitless Summer was.**

 **That, and maybe a few other things that I may or may not have noticed. Feel free to point out my flaws, so hopefully I can do a better job in future chapters.**

 **This one was really just meant to be an action chapter, as well as a slight character introduction chapter with the ending.**

 **Oh! And before I forget, I feel that I should mention one more thing. For those wondering what exactly the Tavros' looks like, basically picture this:**

 **A combination between Yujiro Hanma (the back), Bisuit Oliva (muscle size and definition), and Pickle (overall size), with fur and the head of a bull. As for the sound it made** **..well, think of a growl as guttural, deep, and resonant as possible, then triple the intensity of the chills you feel, and that should give you a pretty good idea of just how scary the Tavros sounds.**

 **Yep. It's a flat out unholy monster (even by Grimm standards).**

 **Speaking of Grimm, in comes Salem!**

 **I had a surprisingly hard time writing her.** **I wanted to create kind of an eerie feeling around her, but I honestly don't think I succeeded. But hey, maybe writing her more will help with that.**

 **Also, side note, JESUS CHRIST, RWBY V6 IS OUT.**

 **AND I'VE BEEN ENJOYING EVERY DAMN SECOND OF IT.**

 **(Seriously though, good fucking job RoosterTeeth, hopefully the quality'll stay consistently good)**

 **I'm surprisingly glad that it took me so long to put this chapter out, otherwise I might've unnecessarily made up Ozpin and Salem's history.**


End file.
